Poverty-stricken Irish families are being forced to prioritise rent – ahead of food and heating.
The alarming revelation was made today, in the Central Statistics Office’s Survey on Income and Living Conditions.
According to the study, hundreds of thousands of people are struggling because of poverty, low income and high housing costs.
Indeed, the situation has become so serious that, last year, Saint Vincent de Paul received 130,000 calls for help from people in dire straits.
While the study revealed that almost a fifth of the population (16.9 percent) is at risk of poverty, one-parent families are among those hardest hit.
Caroline Fahey, Social Policy Officer at Saint Vincent de Paul, said: “One-parent families, a particularly vulnerable group, have seen an increase in the consistent poverty rate to 26.2 percent in 2015.”
Those living in rented accommodation are also suffering, with many admitting to prioritising rent ahead of basic essentials.
With 2,500 children now living in emergency accommodation, there have been fresh calls for change, to alleviate the poverty crisis.
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