The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has revealed that around 900,000 residents in Ireland were subjected to “forced deprivation” due to escalating food and energy costs, which depleted the living standards in 2023. Despite household incomes increasing nominally in the past year, there was a nearly 2% real-term decrease when taking inflation into account.
The CSO’s latest Income and Living Conditions Survey showed an increase in the number of individuals unable to access basic essentials, jumping from 16.6% in 2022 to 17.3% in 2023, representing an approximate total of 882,000 individuals.
Forced deprivation is a term denoting the inability to access elementary products and services such as heating or new furniture and clothing because of financial constraints. The groups facing the highest risk were identified as those with long-standing health issues prohibiting them from working (44.7%), single-adult homes with underage children (41.4%), unemployed individuals (37.8%), and those residing in rented or gratis accommodation (36.5%).
There was also an increase in the number of individuals unable to afford heating, going up from 8.2% in 2022 to 10.8% in 2023. The CSO indicated that the median household income was €55,149 in 2023, up by €3,005 (5.8%) compared to the previous year. Nevertheless, after adjusting for inflation, the median income came to €50,162, illustrating the damaging effects of heightened prices.
Single adult households with people aged 65 or above had the least disposable income with a median of €19,753. In comparison, households with three adults and no children had a median of €79,167. The report further highlighted a strong correlation between higher income and homeownership. The median disposable income for owner-occupied homes was €63,036, up by €2,083 (3.4%), whereas homes in rented accommodations saw a 7.6% increase to €43,433.
According to the survey, individuals deemed at “risk of poverty”, earning below 60% of the average income, saw a decrease from 12.5% to 10.6% last year due to governmental strategies to reduce living expenses. Without these strategies in place, the poverty risk rate would have been 13%, exceeding that of 2022, as stated by the CSO.
– Receive Business push alerts for the most current news, analysis and commentary straight to your mobile
– Stay abreast with The Irish Times on WhatsApp
– Listen to our Inside Business podcast, updated on a weekly basis – Locate the newest episode here.