New dimensions of inequality in Northern Ireland, 1998–2020

Abstract

To understand inequality in the post-Good Friday Agreement (post-GFA) period, we must understand how inequality in Northern Ireland has been subject to stressors long acknowledged in the international literature, though seldom considered in this context. These ‘new’ stressors include destandardization, retrenchment, and financialization, which have largely replaced the class and employment differentials that characterised 20th century inequality. We explore the specific experience of inequality in Northern Ireland since Good Friday. In doing so, we contextualise its experience by detailing important structural and institutional changes over this time, explaining how they work in the unique socioeconomic context of post-GFA Northern Ireland.