Regional EU Sustainable Development Indicators for Ireland 2022

Peace and personal security

Standardised death rate due to homicide

SDG_16_10 measures the standardised death rate of homicide and injuries inflicted by another person with the intent to injure or kill by any means, including ‘late effects’ from assault (International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes X85 to Y09 and Y87.1). It does not include deaths due to legal interventions or war (ICD codes Y35 and Y36). The rate is calculated by dividing the number of people dying due to homicide or assault by the total population. Data on causes of death (COD) refer to the underlying cause which - according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) - is "the disease or injury which initiated the train of morbid events leading directly to death, or the circumstances of the accident or violence which produced the fatal injury". COD data are derived from death certificates. The medical certification of death is an obligation in all member states. The data are presented as standardised death rates, meaning they are adjusted to a standard age distribution in order to measure death rates independently of different age structures of populations. This approach improves comparability over time and between countries. The standardised death rates used here are calculated on the basis of the standard European population referring to the residents of the countries. See Table 16.1 and Figure 16.1.

Population reporting crime, violence or vandalism in their area

SDG_16_20 shows the share of the population who reported that they face the problem of crime, violence or vandalism in their local area. This describes the situation where the respondent feels crime, violence or vandalism in the area to be a problem for the household, although this perception is not necessarily based on personal experience. See Table 16.2 and Figure 16.2.

Access to justice

General government total expenditure on law courts

SDG_16_30 measures the general government total expenditure on law courts according to the classification of the functions of government (COFOG). This includes expenditure on administration, operation or support of civil and criminal law courts and the judicial system, including enforcement of fines and legal settlements imposed by the courts and operation of parole and probation systems; legal representation and advice on behalf of government or on behalf of others provided by government in cash or in services. Law courts include administrative tribunals, ombudsmen and the like, and exclude prison administrations. In computing the per capita indicator, the average National Accounts (NA) population data of the reference year is used as denominator (calculated as the arithmetic mean of the population on 1st January of two consecutive years). See Table 16.3 and Figure 16.3.

Perceived independence of the justice system

SDG_16_40 is designed to explore respondents’ perceptions about the independence of the judiciary across EU member states, looking specifically at the perceived independence of the courts and judges in a country. Data on the perceived independence of the justice system stem from annual Flash Eurobarometer surveys starting in 2016 on behalf of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers. See Table 16.4 and Figure 16.4.

Trust in institutions

Corruption perceptions index

SDG_16_50 is a composite index based on a combination of surveys and assessments of corruption from 13 different sources and scores and ranks countries based on how corrupt a country’s public sector is perceived to be, with a score of 0 representing a very high level of corruption and a score of 100 representing a very clean country. The sources of information used for the 2017 CPI are based on data gathered in the 24 months preceding the publication of the index. The CPI includes only sources that provide a score for a set of countries/territories and that measure perceptions of corruption in the public sector. For a country/territory to be included in the ranking, it must be included in a minimum of three of the CPI’s data sources. The CPI is published by Transparency International. See Table 16.5 and Figure 16.5.

Population with confidence in EU institutions

SDG_16_60 measures confidence among EU citizens in a selection of EU institutions: the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the European Central Bank. It is expressed as the share of positive opinions (people who declare that they tend to trust) about the institutions. Citizens are asked to express their confidence levels by choosing the following alternatives: ‘tend to trust’, ‘tend not to trust’ and ‘don’t know’ or ‘no answer’. The indicator is based on the Eurobarometer, a survey which has been conducted twice a year since 1973 to monitor the evolution of public opinion in the member states. See Table 16.6 and Figure 16.6.