Equality and Discrimination 2024

Accessing/Using Other Public Services

In addition to discrimination experienced in their access to/use of transport services, respondents to the 2024 survey were also asked about whether they experienced discrimination of any form in their access to/use of public services.

Irish Travellers/Roma Experienced Most Discrimination in Accessing Public Services other than Transport

At an overall level, since the survey was last carried out in Quarter 1 2019, perceived discrimination in access to/use of other public services, increased marginally by one percentage point from 1% in 2019 to 2% in 2024 (See Table 10.1 and Equality and Discrimination 2019).

Analysis of the survey results shows that people in the Irish Traveller/Roma communities had experienced most discrimination in their access to/use of other public services. One in twelve (8%) Irish Travellers/Roma felt they were discriminated against in this way.

Analysis by sexual orientation shows that non-heterosexual people experienced more discrimination in public services than heterosexual or straight people. Some 5% of gay/lesbian, and bisexual people had experienced discrimination in their use of public services other than transport, compared with just 2% of heterosexual people.

Analysis by gender identity showed that there was very little disparity in the experience of discrimination felt by people of differing gender identities. Just 1% of non-cisgender people experienced such discrimination compared with 2% of cisgender people (See Figure 10.1 and Table 10.1).

Almost One in Eight who Experienced Discrimination Using Other Public Services Experienced Discrimination Frequently

By far, the most common perceived grounds for such discrimination was race (colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins) at 43%. This was almost double the next most common perceived grounds for discrimination, socio-economic background (including address, accent, level of education, type of housing, employment status etc.) (22%), followed by disability at 20%.

Almost one in eight (12%) of these respondents said the discrimination had happened frequently, while six in ten (60%) said they felt discriminated against in their use of public services (other than transport) on a few occasions. For more than one in five (22%), the perceived discrimination had happened just once.

One in nine (11%) of these respondents were seriously affected by this discrimination and said that it had a very serious effect on their lives, while more than one in five (21%) said it had little or no effect on them (See Figure 10.2 and Table 10.3).