Poverty, Income Inequality and Living Standards in Ireland: 2nd Annual Report

Abstract

The mission of the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) is to advance evidence-based policymaking that supports economic sustainability and social progress in Ireland. ESRI researchers apply the highest standards of academic excellence to challenges facing policymakers, focusing on 12 areas of critical importance to 21st century Ireland.The Institute was founded in 1960 by a group of senior civil servants led by Dr T. K. Whitaker, who identified the need for independent and in-depth research analysis to provide a robust evidence base for policymaking in Ireland. Since then, the Institute has remained committed to independent research and its work is free of any expressed ideology or political position. The Institute publishes all research reaching the appropriate academic standard, irrespective of its findings or who funds the research.The quality of its research output is guaranteed by a rigorous peer review process. ESRI researchers are experts in their fields and are committed to producing work that meets the highest academic standards and practices.The work of the Institute is disseminated widely in books, journal articles and reports. ESRI publications are available to download, free of charge, from its website. Additionally, ESRI staff communicate research findings at regular conferences and seminars.The ESRI is a company limited by guarantee, answerable to its members and governed by a Council, comprising 14 members who represent a cross-section of ESRI members from academia, civil services, state agencies, businesses and civil society. The Institute receives an annual grant-in-aid from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to support the scientific and public interest elements of the Institute's activities; the grant accounted for an average of 30 per cent of the Institute's income over the lifetime of the last Research Strategy. The remaining funding comes from research programmes supported by government departments and agencies, public bodies and competitive research programmes.

Caregiving among Young Adults in Ireland

“…It also allows us to take account of household resources that may mediate the impact of parental illness or disability on young people's outcomes. Previous research has highlighted that people with a disability experience much higher rates of poverty in Ireland (Roantree et al, 2022;Watson et al, 2016) and require higher levels of income to attain the same standard of living as those without a disability (Indecon, 2021). Importantly, the longitudinal design allows us to consider the effects of earlier care responsibilities on subsequent outcomes.…”

Housing adequacy and child outcomes in early and middle childhood

“…For example, home ownership is associated with living in more affluent areas with greater facilities and social housing with more disadvantaged neighbourhoods (Lupton et al, 2009;Grotti et al, 2018) and poorer physical housing quality (Watson and Corrigan, 2019), while private renting is associated with lower security of tenure (Russell et al, 2021). Affordability problems are more common in the social housing and private rental sectors Roantree et al, 2022). Moreover, quality of housing, housing tenure and location are also closely related to households' socio-economic resources.…”

“…Previous research has also highlighted further differences between sectors in Ireland. This includes greater problems of affordability in the social rented sector and the (unsupported) rental sector (Corrigan et al, 2019;Grotti et al, 2018;Russell et al, 2021;Roantree et al, 2022). Higher levels of neighbourhood problems, environmental deprivation and poorer services have also been noted for those in social housing and private rented sectors (Grotti et al, 2018;Watson and Williams, 2003) and these residents are also exposed to poorer physical housing conditions (Grotti et al, 2018;Watson and Corrigan, 2018) including overcrowding in the case of local authority tenants (Grotti et al, 2018).…”

Distributional impact of tax and welfare policies: Budget 2023

“…The credit will benefit middle income households most as those earning less than circa €18,000 per annum will not have sufficient tax liabilities to benefit from the credit. All renters above this income level will experience a reduction in their income tax liabilities of €500 per year, which will somewhat mitigate the decline in housing affordability for middle income renters shown by Roantree et al (2022).…”

“…This contrasts with the second of the new housing related taxes, a new levy on certain concrete products at the point of first supply to part-fund the (Mica) Defective Concrete Blocks Redress Scheme. Given robust (inelastic) demand for housing and evidence of elastic supply with respect to both prices and costs (Lyons and Günnewig-Mönert, 2022), the economic burden of this new levy is likely to fall on the residents of newly built homes rather than on industry, exacerbating issues of affordability that have been highlighted by Roantree et al (2022), Doval Tedin and Faubert (2020), and Corrigan et al (2019 amongst others.…”