Dr. Mark Cassidy:

There are many important issues in relation to wealth distribution. From the perspective of vulnerability, the distribution of those in indebtedness is probably the greater vulnerability. There are important and interesting distributional trends within these aggregate figures. On the debt side, overall indebtedness, which is the figure below the line on the chart, has declined significantly but Irish household debt is still the fourth highest in Europe. There are certain cohorts within that, particularly the age group between 35 and 45 years, who are still extremely highly indebted. This is the generation which purchased property just before the crisis in the early 2000s. From the perspective of wealth, indebtedness and net worth, the vulnerability of that cohort to a shock to either income or house prices is the greatest vulnerability.