Live Register falls to 10.1% but real good news is in the detail – Corcoran Kennedy

“The Live Register has fallen for the 32^nd consecutive month and now stands at 10.1%, but the real good news is the drop by almost 10% in the long-term unemployed and a decrease of just under 20% in the number of people under 25 who are signing on”, says Marcella Corcoran Kennedy, Fine Gael TD for Laois/Offaly and Chair of the Oireachtas Jobs Committee.

“We know that while the unemployment rate has been dropping there are still people who have not felt the benefit of the recovery. There are people who have been stuck on social welfare and young people who have not been able to access the jobs market.

“The news that the long-term unemployment rate has fallen by 9.8% since this time last year and that there has been a 19.4% reduction in the number of people under 25 on the Live Register, says more about our economic situation and our prospects than the headline figure.

“Bit by bit and inch by inch we are getting closer to bringing our unemployment rate below 10% but the key to a stable and sustainable economy is to ensure opportunities for our young people and to tackle the issue of the long term unemployed. While there is still a lot of work to be done, we are making significant progress in this area.

“Tax revenue of €6,737 million was collected in the year to end-February 2015, representing an increase of 15.9%, and in the first two months of this year €330 million, or 16.2% more than the same period in 2014, was collected.

“The economic recovery is taking hold and with the launch of the Regional Enterprise Strategy, more positive change can be expected in all regions of the country in the coming months. I welcome the news that the Live Register has fallen to 10.1% this month but I feel even more hopeful and encouraged by the fact that our young people are getting back to work and that those who have been stuck in the welfare trap are entering the labour market.”