Tá leagan Gaeilge den leathanch seo ar fáil. Féach Suirbhé ar Ioncam agus Dálaí Maireachtála (SILC): Díothacht Fhorghníomhach 2023.
The percentage of people living in enforced deprivation increased from 16.6% in 2022 to 17.3% in 2023.
The groups most likely to experience enforced deprivation were those; unable to work due to long-standing health problems (44.7%); living in single-adult households with children under 18 (41.4%); unemployed (37.8%) and living in rented or rent-free accommodation (36.5%).
The percentage of people unable to afford to get-together with family or friends for a drink or meal once a month rose from 9.2% in 2022 to 12.3% in 2023.
The percentage of people who went without heating at some time during the last 12 months through lack of money went up from 8.2% in 2022 to 10.8% in 2023.
Just over half (51.0%) of households had adequate savings to maintain the same standard of living for at least three months.
The percentage of households in 2023 that regarded housing costs as a heavy financial burden was relatively unchanged from the 2022 rate (30.6% and 30.9% respectively).
Analysis by tenure status shows that 14.2% of rented households had great difficulty in making ends meet compared with 2.8% of owner-occupied households.
The annual Survey of Income and Living Condition (SILC) results are weighted using population estimates which are generated on an ongoing basis. Census of Population 2022 results have been used to revise population estimates for 2020 to 2022, and consequently results for SILC survey years 2020, 2021, and 2022 are revised. Please see the Information Note which compares published and revised results.
The SILC household survey is the official source of data on household and individual income, and it provides a number of key national poverty indicators, such as: the at risk of poverty rate, the rate of enforced deprivation, and the consistent poverty rate. This publication focuses on enforced deprivation.
Data collection for SILC was carried out between January to July 2023.
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has also today (07 March 2024) issued further results from the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) for 2023. Further results include data on household and individual income, and results for several key national poverty indicators, such as the at risk of poverty rate, the consistent poverty rate, and rates of enforced deprivation.
As part of the process of revising population estimates for SILC 2020 to 2022, using Census of Population 2022 data, a change to the population benchmark definition was also implemented. Under the EU Integration of European Social Statistics (IESS) framework regulation the total of the usually resident population living in private households are used as the SILC population benchmarks. These benchmarks do not include those people living in communal establishments.
Further information is available in the Background Notes section.
These are audio files with 30-second quotes from CSO Senior Statistician Gerry Reilly with the Income Consumption and Wealth (ICW) Division, about Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) Enforced Deprivation 2023.
Media outlets have permission touse the clips as long as they credit the CSO.
When we talk about enforced deprivation, it’s when a person cannot afford two or more of eleven items that are considered the norm for people in society, such as being able to afford to keep their home adequately warm or being able to afford to meet up with family or friends for a drink or a meal once a month.
The Survey on Income and Living Conditions found that the percentage of people in Ireland living in enforced deprivation went up from 13.7% in 2021 to 16.6% in 2022, and increased further to 17.3% in 2023.
Over 30% of households considered housing costs to be a heavy financial burden in 2023. This rate was relatively unchanged from 2022, but up from 23% of households in 2021.
However, differences emerge when we look at rented and owner-occupied households. In 2023, just over 40% of rented households found housing costs to be a heavy financial burden, compared with almost 26% of owner-occupied households.
The percentage of people who were unable to afford to get-together with family or friends for a drink or meal once a month rose from 9.2% in 2022 to 12.3% in 2023.
Results from the Survey on Income and Living Conditions also show that just over 14% of rented households had great difficulty in making ends meet compared with almost 3% of owner-occupied households.
Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (07 March 2024) released Enforced Deprivation Results from the Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) for 2023.
Commenting on today’s publication, Gerry Reilly, Senior Statistician in the Income, Consumption and Wealth Division, said:
“Today’s results from the CSO’s SILC 2023 show an overall increase in the percentage of people experiencing deprivation in 2023. The report also highlights the higher incidence of deprivation amongst certain groups such as single-adult households with children; persons unable to work due to long-standing health problems; the unemployed; and those in rented accommodation.
Increase in Deprivation
People are defined as experiencing enforced deprivation if they live in a household that cannot afford two or more of the 11 basic deprivation items that are considered to be the norm for other households in society such as being unable to afford to get-together with family or friends for a drink or meal once a month or being unable to afford to keep their home adequately warm. For the full list of deprivation items, see At Risk of Poverty Indicators Explained (PDF 1,094KB) .
In 2023, 17.3% of people were experiencing enforced deprivation, compared with 16.6% in 2022 and 13.7% in 2021.
The deprivation rate increased in seven of the 11 deprivation items in 2023. The largest percentage point increase was for people unable to afford to get-together with family or friends for a drink or meal once a month, going from 9.2% in 2022 to 12.3% in 2023.
Looking at factors such as employment status, household composition, and tenure on deprivation, CSO analysis reveals significant differences in deprivation rates.
Self-Defined Economic Status
Individuals who described themselves as ‘unable to work due to long-standing health problems’ or as ‘unemployed’ had the highest rates of enforced deprivation (44.7% and 37.8% respectively). People least likely to experience enforced deprivation were the employed (12.3%) and the retired (9.6%). Almost one in five (18.5%) people who described themselves as unemployed were unable to afford to keep the home adequately warm. The comparable rate for persons ‘unable to work due to long-standing health problems’ was 16.1%. One in twenty (5.0%) people who described themselves as employed, and a similar proportion (4.5%) of retired persons, were unable to afford to keep the home adequately warm.
Household Composition
Higher rates of deprivation were seen amongst those living in single-adult households with children with 41.4% living in enforced deprivation; 19.0% were unable to afford to keep the home adequately warm and 27.2% were unable to afford to get-together with family or friends for a drink or meal once a month.
For persons living in households composed of two adults with up to three children under 18, 17.7% were experiencing enforced deprivation; 7.6% were unable to afford to keep the home adequately warm, and 14.2% were unable to afford to get-together with family or friends for a drink or meal once a month.
Tenure
People living in rented or rent-free accommodation were over four times more likely to be living in enforced deprivation as those in owner-occupied accommodation, with enforced deprivation rates of 36.5% and 8.8% respectively. People living in rented or rent-free accommodation had higher deprivation rates for each of the 11 deprivation items. For example, one in four (24.7%) persons living in rented accommodation could not afford to get-together with family or friends for a drink or meal once a month compared with 6.8% of persons living in owner-occupied dwellings.
Higher Rates of Difficulty in Making Ends Meet for Rented Households
Households were asked to rate their self-perceived level of difficulty in making ends meet, with the answer options being: ‘with great difficulty’; ‘with difficulty’; ‘with some difficulty’; ‘fairly easily’; ‘easily’; ‘very easily’.
Almost one in two households (47.8%) said they had at least some difficulty in making ends meet in 2023, compared with 50.4% of households in 2022. The comparable rate in 2021 was 41.8%. The proportion of households reporting great difficulty in making ends meet in 2023 increased slightly from the 2022 rate, (6.4% and 5.5% respectively). More than two in three (72.1%) single-adult households with children under 18 had at least some difficulty in making ends meet compared with one in three (33.5%) households comprised of two-adults where at least one is aged 65 or over. Analysis by tenure status shows that 14.2% of rented or rent-free households had great difficulty in making ends meet compared with 2.8% of owner-occupied households.
Household Finances and Savings at the End of a Typical Month
Households were asked about their finances at the end of a typical month with the answer options being: ‘put money aside’; ‘need to draw on savings’; ‘need to borrow money’; ‘neither put money aside nor need to draw on savings or borrow’.
At the end of a typical month, more than half of households (53.4%) could put money aside, 5.6% needed to draw from savings, and 3.4% needed to borrow money. Analysis by tenure status shows that 1.4% of owner-occupied households needed to borrow money at the end of a typical month compared with 7.8% of rented or rent-free households.
Households were asked if they were not to receive any income (such as wages, pension or social welfare payments), how long they would be able to maintain the same standard of living using savings. The answer options to this question were ‘less than three months’; ’ three months or more but less than six’; ‘six months or more but less than 12 months; ‘12 months or more’. Half of households (49.0%) said they could only maintain the same standard of living for less than three months, while 15.2% could maintain the same standard of living for 12 months or more. Seven in ten (71.1%) rented or rent-free households and four in ten (38.5%) owner-occupied households could maintain the same standard of living for less than three months.
Increased Financial Burden of Housing Costs Since 2021
Households were asked the extent to which housing costs are a financial burden to the household. The answer categories were ‘a heavy burden’; ‘somewhat a burden; ‘not a burden at all’.
In 2023, 30.6% of households regarded housing costs as a heavy financial burden, compared with 30.9% in 2022 and 23.1% in 2021. The proportion reporting housing costs to be no burden at all has fallen over the last three years, reducing from 29.6% in 2021 to 21.6% in 2022 and 20.3% in 2023. Two in five (41.2%) of rented or rent-free households found housing costs to be a heavy burden, compared with 25.6% of owner-occupied households.”