Offaly is country's third poorest county
Offaly was the country's third poorest county in 2009, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office.
The newly-published County Incomes and Regional GDP figures show that only Donegal and Monaghan citizens had the lower average disposable incomes in the country in 2009.
Disposable income in Offaly amounted to €18,621 in 2009, a significant drop on the €20,109 recorded in 2008.
The fall indicates the impact of the recession during 2009 on average incomes in Offaly.
However, the recession appears to have hit wealthier areas more harshly as the average disposable income in Offaly actually rose as a percentage of the national average during 2009.
The latest figures show it represented 87.2% of the State average in 2009 compared to 86.5% the previous years.
The average disposable income in Monaghan during 2009 was 84.3% of the State average, while Donegal was rock bottom at 82.9%.
Shocking, the average disposable income of an Offaly citizen is some €5,696 behind the figure recorded in Dublin, the country's wealthiest county, and €2,735 behind the State average.
Offaly was also the poorest county in the midlands in 2009, with Westmeath topping the bill at 93% of the State average.
On a regional basis, for the first time in three years, the Midlands is not the State's poorest relation, having been overtaken by the Border region (Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Louth, Monaghan and Sligo) as the region with the lowest average disposable income.
The CSO says county estimates should be interpreted with caution, but the figures regionally cite the Midlands as the State's poorest relation.
The average disposable income of each Midlanders is €2,011, below the national average.
In further bad news for the Midlands, the statistics also showed it had the lowest GVA in the country, a measure of the value of goods and services produced in the region less the cost of the materials and services used in their manufacture which were brought in from outside the region.
At just 64.9% of the State average, the midland figure is in start contrast to the Dublin Region which is at 147% of the State average. The new statistics are likely to increase pressure on State agencies to ensure more balanced regional development. There are also set to be renewed calls for State investment in the poorer counties, such as Donegal, Monaghan, Offaly and Kerry.
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