John Paul Phelan says more work still to do as live register falls in both Kilkenny and Carlow

Junior Minister John Paul Phelan says the government still has more work to do to attract more jobs into the local economy.

It comes as the latest figures show unemployment levels locally have dropped significantly in the last 12 months.

More than 700 in Carlow and nearly 600 in Kilkenny have come off the live register in the past year.

Minister Phelan is welcoming the improvement but says we need to create more jobs to help bring back all the people who’ve had to leave the area to find work.