NEARLY ONE quarter of Irish people have less than €20 a week to live on once all their essential bills have been paid, an income tracking survey published this morning indicates.
The survey, from the Irish League of Credit Unions, illustrates just how hard austerity measures and price hikes are hitting people and paints a very bleak picture for many who are finding it increasingly hard to make ends meet.
It found that 23 per cent, or 805,000 people, now have just €70 left each month after essential bills are paid, while one in two adults say they are unable to meet all their financial obligations each month, and 47 per cent admit they are regularly forced to pay at least one bill late.
Just over a quarter of the 1,000 adults surveyed by the league last month said they had less than 5 per cent of their income left once all their bills were paid, and 82 per cent of this group expressed concern that they would be unable to cope if there were any further cuts to their income or social welfare.
The survey also found that 45 per cent of those with less than 5 per cent of their income left after all their bills were paid did not believe they or their families had a future in this country.
It is the second in what is planned to be a regular series of surveys carried out by the league and its chief executive Kieron Brennan described it as a “further indication of just how hard the ordinary people of Ireland are being hit by increasing household expenses”.
“We have reached the mid-2011 mark and the crisis for families across the country is escalating. Even more people with only a small percentage of their income left feel like there is no future for themselves or their families in Ireland.” The survey found 15 per cent had difficulties making ends meet, while 8 per cent said their income did not cover essential bills. Some 36 per cent said what they had left after paying for essentials had decreased since March, while 60 per cent said it had fallen since this time last year.
It found that mortgages and rent were considered the most essential bills, followed by utilities and groceries, while those most likely to be deferred were TV licences, bin charges and phone bills.