More than a third of residents in the Canary Islands are living below the poverty line, according to the latest data for 2011.
The latest survey from the National Statistics Institute, (INE), reveals Canarians, with 33.8 per cent living in poverty, are the poorest in all of Spain standing 12 per cent above the national average.
In monetary terms, according to the INE, the poverty threshold ranged from 7,355 p.a. for a single person and 15,445 p.a. for a couple with two children.
The Living Conditions Survey also revealed that in 2012 the Canary Islands are second only to Murcia in the number of people (19 per cent), struggling to make ends meet at the end of every month, again well above the national average, (12.7).
The report makes for depressing reading as it goes on to say that more than 60 per cent of households in the islands are unable to meet an unexpected expense, such as a car repair, while more than 53 per cent cannot afford even one week’s holiday away from home.
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