Rent and mortgage crisis driving 300,000 into poverty

The Government's Affordable Housing Act will only serve to raise house prices rather than make them affordable. Once again the Government has ignored people just above or already below the poverty line, writes Colette Bennett, Economic and Social Analyst with Social Justice Ireland.

When rent and mortgage interest payments are taken into account, almost one in every five of the population are at risk of poverty. Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

The latest data released from the Central Statistics Office indicates that 13.2% of the population, more than 660,000 people, are at risk of poverty. 

But the cost of accommodation is not included in these calculations.