20,000 join Live Register — but rate of new claims slowest this year

THE rate of people joining the dole queues slowed last month for the first time this year — but the numbers on the Live Register still continue to rise steadily to the projected figure of 500,000 by the end of the year.

According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the total number on the Live Register, which measures numbers claiming unemployment benefit, now stands at 372,800, up 87% in the year to March.

In March, the numbers claiming the dole rose by 20,000, or 5.7%, from a month earlier. There was a rise of 26,700 (8.2%) in February and a record 33,000 or 11.3% rise in January.