EVERY WEEK, TheJournal.ie offers a selection of statistics and numerical nuggets to help you digest the week that has just passed.
26 – The number of Irish people who have moved to Syria to fight in that country’s protracted Civil War, according to British research – making Ireland one of the highest suppliers of fighters per capita, anywhere outside the Arab World.
€63 – The amount that a British minister claimed he could live on each week, in response to criticisms about the UK government’s cuts to welfare rates. As of yesterdya afternoon, 438,000 people had signed a petition challenging him to do just that.
Three in five – The proportion of Special Needs Assistants who have been physically attacked by the pupils they are assisting, according to a survey by IMPACT. 18 per cent of SNAs said it happened on a daily basis.
91.1 per cent – The proportion of the Samoan population who were obese (having a body mass index of over 30.0), in figures produced in 2009. An airline from the Pacific island nation, Samoan Air, has become the first in the world to introduce a pricing model where passenger fares are calculated based on the combined weight of the passenger and their luggage.
11,682 - The number of new cars sold in March, according to industry sales figures. That’s down 14 per cent compared to March 2012.
425,088 – The number of people signing on the Live Register at the end of March. On a seasonally adjusted basis, that’s 10,200 fewer than a year ago.
€3.7 billion – The size of Ireland’s Exchequer deficit for the first quarter of 2013. That’s a fall of €568 million compared to the same period the previous year.
€4.81 million – The amount that Ireland’s ministers spent on travel, salaries, mileage and other associated costs last year. Around half of the cost was incurred by the Department of Justice supplying cars and drivers for the Taoiseach, Tanaiste, President, Chief Justice and DPP.
42,000 – The number of working teachers who will have to undergo a new round of Garda vetting, after the introduction of new laws on vetting people who work with vulnerable categories including children. Alan Shatter has rejected proposals that a teaching organisation be allowed to vet existing teachers.
23 – The number of primary schools, meanwhile, which could see their patronage change in the coming years. The moves follow a survey of parents in 38 towns; in most cases the parents sought the introduction of an English-speaking multi-denominational school to replace the current Catholic offering.
Almost 8,000 – The number of mobile phones reported stolen to Gardaí in the first half of 2012. The true number could be higher, depending on how many people bother reporting a stolen phone.
3.9 million – The number of people who passed through Dublin Airport in the first quarter of 2013.
37 minutes – The amount of time added to an hour-long journey when traffic in Dublin is at its highest. TomTom’s figures estimate that Dublin is the 11th most congested city in Europe – though that’s down from sixth in 2011.
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