One in three in NI 'living in poverty'
One in three people in Northern Ireland is living in poverty, new research revealed today.
With children among the worst sufferers, the startling levels of inequality depict the North as worse off than the Republic or Britain.
Researchers from the University of Ulster and Queen’s University, Belfast discovered that many on the breadline were too poor even to attend a wedding.
The report declared: “Northern Ireland is one of the most unequal societies in the developed world.”
More than 3,100 people were surveyed between October 2002 and January 2003 for the British government-funded study.
Poverty was measured by both low income and the inability to afford items or activities most people regard as necessities.
These included new, rather than second-hand clothes, and attending weddings, funerals or other social functions.
Having enough money to pay heating, electricity and telephone was also used as a key indicator.
The report, Bare Necessities: Poverty and Social Exclusion in Northern Ireland, has been published by think tank Democratic Dialogue.
It claims to provide a scientific measure of poverty and social exclusion in Northern Ireland for the first time.
Chief among its findings is that half a million people are living below the poverty line.
Research directors Professor Paddy Hillyard from the University of Ulster, and Professor Eithne McLaughlin and Mike Tomlinson of Queen’s, also uncovered poverty indicators based on class, gender, age, disability and religion. These include:
:: more than a third (37.4%) of children are growing up in poor households
:: two-thirds (67%) of lone parents are in poverty
:: women are more likely to be living in poor households than men (29% to 25%)
:: more than half (56%) of households containing disabled people are in poverty, compared to just 29% where all members are able-bodied
:: Catholics are 1.4 times as likely as Protestants to be below the poverty line
:: nearly half (43%) of Sinn Féin supporters are classed as poor, compared to 19% of Ulster Unionist Party supporters
:: the richest 40% of households possess 67% of total household income in Northern Ireland
:: the poorest 40% of households have one-sixth (17%) of total household income.
The report authors urged political representatives and policy-makers in Northern Ireland to help close the chasm between the wealthy and impoverished.
“The divisions around religion, national identity and political preference dominate all discussions in the media, in local council chambers and in the Assembly,” they said.
“This study has turned the spotlight to other equally important but less visible divisions of class, gender, age and disability.
“The challenge for Northern Ireland as a whole, and local politicians in particular, is how to reduce these deep fractures of inequality and create a more just society.”
