Unemployment up 8,000 in six months to April

The number of people signing on the dole increased by more than 8,000 in the six months to April of this year, according to figures published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) today.

The CSO said the majority of the extra names on the live register were short-term claimants, but the number of long-term unemployed had also increased by just over 1,000.