Ireland ‘failing to plan’ for rise in elderly population

Ireland is heading for an old-age crisis due to its failure to properly plan for the rise in the number of elderly in the decades to come.

The claim came from the National Social Monitor, operated by Social Justice Ireland, which said Ireland will have more than 1m people aged 65 and over by 2031.

Of those, some 136,000 will be aged 85 or over, yet Social Justice Ireland said issues associated with an aging population, social housing, and sustainability had been widely ignored in favour of a continuing focus on the economy.