The other division in Northern Ireland: public attitudes to poverty, economic hardship and social security: Ark research update no 146

In 2021, the Northern Ireland Life and Times survey asked the Northern Ireland (NI) population about their views on a range of issues relating to fairness with regard to incomes, taxes and social security, financial hardship and the cost of the living. It did so at a time when the Covid-19 pandemic had brought about both an economic and public health crisis impacting the everyday lives of many people. The fieldwork for the survey took place during the final quarter of 2021, just before an Omicron wave of COVID-19 infections. Households had lived through the pandemic for about 20 months and household finances were beginning to experience the shock of soaring energy, food and fuel prices. By November 2021, consumer prices had risen to 4.6%, more than double the Bank of England’s target inflation rate. The cost-of-living crunch has since been exacerbated by continued global supply chain constraints and the war in Ukraine. This has driven the most recent, May 2022, inflation rate to 9%. The cost-of-living crisis for household finances will be exacerbated in coming months with inflation expected to soon surpass 10%.