PRIVATE sector rents in Scotland have risen at a faster rate than elsewhere in the UK, official figures show.

Every region across ­Britain saw an annual rise in average rental prices paid by tenants, according to the report from the Office for National Statistics. In the year to December, private rental prices grew by 1.3% in Scotland, 1.2% in Wales and by 1% in England. London recorded the biggest increase over the past 12 months, at 1.6%.

The report said until April last year, the annual pace of rental increases had been higher in England than in Scotland or Wales, but the pace had since been picking up in Scotland and Wales.