evidence: - Ireland has an ageing population as the proportion of people aged 45 or over increased over the last 10 years from 34.9% in 2012 to 40.2% in 2022, while the proportion aged under 45 decreased from 65.1% in 2012 to 59.8% in 2022. - The proportion of the population aged 65 years or over increased from 12.0% in 2012 to 15.1% in 2022. The proportion aged 45-64 years also increased, from 22.9% in 2012 to 25.1% in 2022. [...] - Ireland had the second lowest old-age dependency ratio (the percentage of the population aged 65 or over as a proportion of those aged 15-64) in the EU27 at 22.6%.