1,275 out of work locally

According to the latest figures from the Department of Enterprise, the claimant count in the borough now stands at 1,275, compared to 1,401 in January.

Wards within the borough registering the most claimant counts for unemployment in February were - Ballee with 104 claimaints (110 in January), Ballykeel 102 (100), and Dunclug 96 (110).

The area with the lowest claimant count last month was Ballyloughan with 19 (21 the previous month).

Province-wide, the claimant count saw a very substantial fall over the past month.

The figure dropped by 1,700 to stand at 46,200 in February.

Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster said: “The decrease in the unemployment rate and the number of unemployment related benefit claimants, alongside the sustained increase in employee jobs are all positive signals of growth in the labour market.”