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Economy

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Health

Are UK child poverty rates over seven times higher than those in Scandinavia?
23 April 2024

CLAIM: Child poverty rates in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland are between 2.4% and 3.6% – while in the UK they are 28.3%.

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INACCURATE

On 26 March in a post on social media, BBC NI journalist Mandy McAuley made a claim about recent child poverty figures in the UK

Articles

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Economy

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Health

Are unpaid carers worth hundreds of millions of pounds per year to Northern Ireland?
19 April 2024

CLAIM: Unpaid carers provide the equivalent of hundreds of millions of pounds of work every year, while the Department of Communities spends only 2% of its budget on Carer’s Allowance.

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ACCURATE

On 28 February in a post on social media, Carers NI public affairs manager Craig Harrison claimed: “2%… That’s the amount of DfC’s budget spent

Articles

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Education

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Health

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Law

Have 75% of 16-year-old girls in NI been harassed on the street?
4 April 2024

CLAIM: Three quarters of all 16-year-old girls in Northern Ireland have experienced on-street harassment.

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ACCURATE

On 26 February, during a debate in the Assembly, Sinn Féin MLA Emma Sheerin said: “One of the statistics that really shocked me was in

Articles

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Health

Did almost 1,500 people die in NI in one year because of long waits in A&E?
27 March 2024

CLAIM: There is strong evidence that in 2022, delays in Northern Ireland’s emergency departments led to the premature deaths of 1,434 people.

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ACCURATE WITH CONSIDERATION

In an interview published on 21 January in the Irish Times, the Royal College of Emergency Medicine’s (RCEM) Vice Chair in Northern Ireland Dr Russell

Articles

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Health

Do 11% of Travellers die by suicide?
11 March 2024

CLAIM: Sinn Féin TD Mark Wark said that 11% of all Travellers will die by suicide – a rate which is seven times higher than the general population.

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ACCURATE WITH CONSIDERATION

On 5 December during a debate in the Dail, Sinn Féin TD Mark Ward said: “Some 11% of all Travellers will die by suicide. This

Articles

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Health

Are Northern Ireland’s child vaccination rates for measles too low?
5 March 2024

CLAIM: Alliance MLA Danny Donnelly claimed that almost 89% of children in NI have received their first MMR jab, but fewer return for the second dose – with only 85% fully vaccinated by the time they are five years old. The WHO recommends a 95% vaccination rate to prevent outbreaks.

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ACCURATE

On 19 February during a plenary session in the Northern Ireland Assembly, Alliance MLA Danny Donnelly said: “Almost 89% of children in Northern Ireland have

Articles

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Health

Are over one in four people in NI on a hospital waiting list?
18 January 2024

CLAIM: More than a quarter of the population of Northern Ireland is waiting for an inpatient or outpatient appointment.

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UNSUBSTANTIATED

On 30 November, in a party press release, Sinn Féin claimed that “more than 1 in 4 people here are waiting for an inpatient or

Articles

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Health

Do early medical abortions fail 6% of the time?
22 November 2023

CLAIM: There is a one-in-17 risk that early medical abortions will fail, a fact that is openly acknowledged by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG).

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INACCURATE

On 19 October, Pro-Life campaigner Kevin Duffy claimed on social media: “[The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists] wants women to know there’s a 1-in-17

Articles

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Europe

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Health

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Law

Do child refugees living in NI need a visa to access urgent care if they have heart problems?
16 November 2023

CLAIM: Refugee children living in Northern Ireland who require urgent paediatric cardiological services need a visa in order to travel for specialist care in Dublin.

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ACCURATE WITH CONSIDERATION

On 21 September, Member of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Dr Lucy Michael said in a social media post: “A refugee child in

Articles

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Health

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Topics

Are NI’s hospital waiting lists over twice as long as they are in Ireland?
19 October 2023

CLAIM: Overall hospital waiting lists in Northern Ireland are twice as long, per capita, as those south of the border – while lists of people waiting over a year are over four times as long.

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ACCURATE

An Irish Times article from 25 September claimed: “Hospital waiting lists in Northern Ireland are twice as long as those in the Republic of Ireland,

Articles

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Health

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Law

Does easier access to abortion and contraception lead to an increase in domestic abuse and sexual violence?
22 September 2023

CLAIM: As abortions and contraceptives become more readily available, rates of domestic abuse and sexual violence go up.

Rating

INACCURATE WITH CONSIDERATION

On 7 June on BBC Radio Ulster’s Good Morning Ulster programme, Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown claimed: “The problem is that we find as abortion

Articles

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Education

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Health

Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) in Northern Ireland: What’s happening?
14 August 2023
A four-page leaflet circulated by the lobby group Truth Behind RSE NI (TBRNI) makes multiple claims regarding Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) in Northern Ireland.