40% increase in those seeking assistance from SVP in Sligo

Added: 01-12-2011

St Vincent De Paul says the amount of money they have spent assisting families in Sligo has increased by 40% since this time last year.

The figures follow statistics which show almost one-in-six of the population are now at risk of poverty and, of those, almost a fifth have been unable to pay to heat their homes.

The latest statistics on income and living conditions from the Central Statistics Office show that in 2010, in spite of more and more people falling upon hard times, the rich appear to only be getting richer.

Spokesperson for SVP in Sligo and Leitrim Siobhan Henigan says the level of calls they are receiving for assistance is unprecedented.