High rates of relative poverty among older people will get worse as the population ages unless key steps are taken to address their income and housing inadequacy, a study from the Combat Poverty Agency concludes.
The study, Older People in Poverty In Ireland, is an analysis of data gathered in the 2004 EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions, as they relate to people aged over 65.
Its author, Martina Prunty a researcher with the agency, finds people over 65 had the highest rate of income poverty in 2004, at 27.1 per cent - or about 122,860 older people.
Though this fell in 2005 to 20 per cent of those aged over 65, this group remains at significant risk and remains "highly" dependent on social welfare transfers to stay out of poverty.
Income poverty is defined as living on less than 60 per cent of the median income, which in 2005 meant living on less than €192.74 per week.
Ms Prunty says the survey highlights the dependence among older people on social transfers - ie, social welfare.
"The data showed that the [ State] income received by older people was essential to staying out of poverty. In fact, analysis indicated that without social transfers 87.4 per cent of older people would be income poor."
While the monetary amount of social transfers has increased in recent years, the increases have not kept pace with increases in average industrial earnings.
The result is that "people who rely on social transfers are much more vulnerable to income poverty". For example, the value of the contributory pension relative to average earnings fell from 38 per cent in 1987 to 31 per cent in 2005, she says.
Some older people are more vulnerable. In particular those in rural areas, those living alone and those who living in the Border, midland and western areas were more vulnerable. Women had a higher rate of income poverty.
The study also shows older people suffer most housing deprivation, being less likely to have central heating, a bath or shower, hot water, running water and a toilet in their homes than younger people. They are also more likely to have damp walls, a leaking roof and rotting doors and windows.
"This may be explained by the fact that older people tend to live in older houses and so after a certain amount of time these buildings need maintenance or improvements," says Ms Prunty. They may also be less likely to want the inconvenience of home improvements being carried out.
Public policy is to encourage older people - as they prefer - to stay in their homes as long as possible rather than go into nursing homes. However, the schemes in place to improve living conditions for older people "appear to be inadequate".
In terms of health, 64.3 per cent of older people living in damp, bad-quality accommodation had a chronic illness, compared to 48.2 per cent who were in good housing.
Ms Prunty says that with numbers of older people increasing, "the numbers of income-poor people among that demographic group will increase unless the issue of income inadequacy is tackled".
Given that in 2004, 58.9 per cent of people aged between 15 and 64 said they could not afford to save some income regularly, a large group are unlikely to have savings or pension for when they retire. "Some form of compulsory pension scheme is necessary to ensure greater pension coverage."
The report also recommends
that pension rates be linked to average wages
existing home improvement schemes for older people be reviewed
that the living alone allowance, currently worth €7.70 per week and which has not been increased since 1995, be increased.
