Content warning: This article discusses themes of suicide which may be upsetting to some readers, including the criminalisation of suicide and death by suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling, help is available. Call 116 123 to speak with the Samaritans, or text HELLO to 50808 to reach Text About It. If you have been bereaved by suicide, HUGG is the national suicide bereavement organisation, providing nationwide support groups and resources.
The Legacy of Criminalisation
In present day Ireland, suicide is widely understood as a complex public health issue. Discussions around suicide are typically grounded in prevention, support, and compassion for those affected. The need to destigmatise suicide is recognised, while healthcare providers and mental health organisations encourage open conversations about the topic. Over recent years, more and more public figures in Ireland and abroad have come forward to share their own experiences of mental health challenges and suicidal ideation.
This has not always been the case. Up until 1993, suicide was a crime in Ireland, and attempting suicide carried penalties up to and including life imprisonment (Geoghegan-Quinn, 1993). Speaking openly about a suicide attempt meant openly admitting to having committed a crime, creating a culture of silence around suicide and prohibiting those affected from safely seeking care and support. More broadly, criminalisation amplifies stigma and entrenches it within the law, as attempting or even considering suicide is characterised as a moral wrongdoing (United for Mental Health, 2021).
Although over 30 years have passed since the Criminal Law (Suicide) Act 1993 abolished the offence of suicide, relics of criminalisation are present across Irish society to this day. The phrase “committed suicide” is grounded in the language of criminality; terminology such as “died by” or “lost their life to suicide” is preferred for this reason. A lesser known, enduring consequence of criminalisation affects the recording of deaths by suicide and official suicide statistics.
Deaths by Suicide in Ireland
The rate of suicide in Ireland has been declining in recent years, falling from 12.9 per 100,000 people in 2000 to 8.75 in 2022 (Department of Health, 2026). This means that for every 100,000 people in Ireland, 8.75 died by suicide in 2022, translating to about 500 lives lost to suicide every year. This was the 11th lowest suicide rate among the 27 European Union member states in 2022 (Eurostat, 2026).
However, interpreting international comparisons of suicide rates requires considerable caution. Processes for measuring, recording, and reporting on suicide vary widely across countries; the accuracy of the resulting data therefore varies too. In fact, analyses of Irish data and processes suggest that the rate of suicide in Ireland may be vastly underestimated (Indecon & HUGG, 2024).
Burden of Proof
In accordance with the Coroners Act (1962, s. 17), any deaths which “occurred in a violent or unnatural manner, or unexpectedly and from unknown causes” must undergo a coroner’s inquest. The inquest establishes the circumstances of the person’s death, including the cause. In the case of possible suicide, the death is assessed against the following definition:
“For the act of killing oneself to be classed as suicide, it must be deliberately initiated and performed by the person concerned in the full knowledge, or expectation, of its fatal outcome.” (Indecon & HUGG, 2024, p. 9)
For a death to be ruled as a suicide, the coroner must prove that it meets the above definition “beyond reasonable doubt”. This standard – known as the “burden of proof” – stems directly from the criminalisation of suicide. For someone to be found guilty of a crime in criminal court, the prosecution must demonstrate “beyond reasonable doubt” that they committed the action they are accused of. This is a necessarily strict and high standard, as it intends to protect innocent individuals from wrongful convictions. Historically, ruling someone’s death as a suicide meant declaring them guilty of a crime, so the same standard had to be met. Although suicide was decriminalised in 1993, this standard remained the same. In England and Wales, where suicide was decriminalised in 1961, the burden of proof has since been changed to “on the balance of probabilities”, or “more likely than not” (Office for National Statistics, 2025).
The difference between these standards is significant, as the same death can be ruled as having a different cause depending on which burden of proof is applied. For example, in the absence of a suicide note, a coroner may not be able to prove “beyond reasonable doubt” that the deceased person intended to end their life. Since intent is key to the definition of suicide, their death may then be ruled as an accident or “open” (meaning that the cause of death cannot be determined). However, under the “balance of probabilities” standard, the coroner has greater flexibility to infer intent from, for example, the cause of death or preceding events. In other words, intent is difficult to prove with certainty unless the person explicitly expressed it but can be judged as more likely than not based on other factors. Additionally, concerns have been raised around the lack of standardisation in various aspects of the Coroner Service, so there may also be inconsistencies in how this burden of proof is applied across different Coroner districts (Scraton & McNaull, 2022).
Understanding the True Rate of Suicide
This stringent and at times unattainable “beyond reasonable doubt” standard may result in suicide rates being underestimated in Ireland, as deaths that are likely – but not undoubtedly – suicides are not recorded as such. In fact, research demonstrates that the true suicide rate in Ireland is likely considerably higher than indicated in official data.
The “Irish Probable Suicide Deaths Study, 2015-2018" (Cox et al., 2022) sought to explore the characteristics of people who died by probable suicide in Ireland. To achieve this, the authors applied a “balance of probabilities” standard, including in their analyses both deaths ruled as a suicide by a coroner, and those that were probably – or more likely than not – a suicide. The authors found that of the 2,349 included deaths, only 1,622, or 69%, had been ruled as a suicide by a coroner. In other words, when a “balance of probabilities” standard was applied, an additional 727 deaths were judged as probable suicides, over the 2015 to 2018 period. These 727 people who likely lost their lives to suicide are not included in official data.
More recent research further supports this finding. Indecon and HUGG (2025) assessed the impact of implementing a “balance of probabilities” standard in Ireland. Based on advanced statistical calculations, they estimated that this would result in a 20-25% increase in the number of reported suicides per year. In other words, the true rate of suicide in Ireland may be up to 25% higher than is officially reported. Given the current figure of about 500 deaths by suicide annually, this translates to a further 100 to 125 suicides going unidentified in Ireland each year.Based on 2022 Eurostat data, this would result in a standardised suicide rate of 10.94 per 100,000 population, placing Ireland above the EU27 average suicide rate of 10.58.
Accurate Data, Effective Prevention
Ensuring accuracy in suicide data is not just about statistics. Accurate data are fundamental to understanding the true scale of suicide, identifying patterns and inequalities, evaluating prevention efforts, and directing resources where they are most needed. If we systematically underestimate the number of people who die by suicide, we are systematically underestimating the scale of need and, consequently, allocating insufficient resources to suicide prevention and bereavement support. In other words: what we count shapes what we fund. Every death not recognised in the statistics represents a person, family, and community whose experiences remain invisible in our understanding of suicide.
This is not a concern raised by researchers alone. HUGG, the national suicide bereavement organisation, has called for the modernisation of Irish laws and practices regarding deaths by possible suicide. The Samaritans have similarly raised concerns that the Irish burden of proof may result in an underestimation of the true suicide rate and impede timely responses to emerging patterns. Mental Health Reform (2025), representing over 80 organisations, have argued for the lowering of the burden of proof to a “balance of probabilities”. In fact, the need to review these processes is recognised within policy too. Ireland’s previous suicide reduction strategy, “Connecting for Life 2015-2024", set out to “Review (and, if necessary, revise) current recording procedures for death by suicide” (Department of Health, 2015, p. 53). The recently published, current iteration of the strategy, “Connecting for Life 2026-2035" specifically addresses the burden of proof, stating that consideration should be given to changing this to a “balance of probabilities” approach (Department of Health, 2026).
Although almost three decades have passed since suicide was decriminalised in Ireland, the legacy of criminalisation persists to this day. It remains embedded in the systems through which suicide is recognised, recorded, counted, and responded to. To understand suicide accurately, prevent future deaths, and support those bereaved by suicide, we need data that reflect the reality of those deaths. If today’s data are shaped by an archaic legal framework where attempted suicide was met with imprisonment and not support, then are they truly fit to inform present-day prevention efforts and supports?
References
Coroners Act, Government of Ireland, (1962). https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1962/act/9/enacted/en/html
Cox, G., Munnelly, A., Rochford, S., & Kavalidou, K. (2022). Irish Probable Suicide Deaths Study (IPSDS) 2015–2018. HSE National Office for Suicide Prevention. https://www.nsrf.ie/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/ipsds.pdf
Department of Health. (2015). Connecting for Life: Ireland’s National Strategy to Reduce Suicide 2015–2024. https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-health/publications/connecting-for-life-irelands-national-strategy-to-reduce-suicide-2015-2024/
Department of Health. (2026). Ireland’s Strategy to Reduce Suicide and Self-harm, Connecting for Life: 2026–2035. Government of Ireland. https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-health/publications/irelands-strategy-to-reduce-suicide-and-self-harm-connecting-for-life-20262035/
Eurostat. (2026). Causes of death - standardised death rate by NUTS 2 region of residence (hlth_cd_asdr2). [Data set]. European Commission. https://doi.org/10.2908/HLTH_CD_ASDR2
Geoghegan-Quinn, M. (1993, May 5). Dáil Éireann debate - Criminal Law (Suicide) (No. 2) Bill 1993: Second and Subsequent Stages [Debate transcript]. Houses of the Oireachtas. https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/1993-05-05/20/
Indecon & HUGG. (2024). Impact of Changes in Burden of Proof on Recorded Rate of Suicide in Ireland. https://hugg.ie/news-events/the-rate-of-suicide-is-being-significantly-underestimated/
Mental Health Reform. (2025). Suicide Reporting Briefing Note: A Coalition Conversation. https://mentalhealthreform.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Suicide-Reporting-Briefing-Note.pdf
Office for National Statistics. (2025, October 3). Understanding suicide registrations following a change to the standard of proof in England and Wales. https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/articles/understandingsuicideregistrationsfollowingachangetothestandardofproofinenglandandwales/2025-10-03#cite-this-statistical-bulletin
Scraton, P. & McNaull, G. (2022). Death Investigation, Coroners’ Inquests and the Rights of the Bereaved. Irish Council for Civil Liberties. https://www.iccl.ie/report/iccl-report-on-the-coroners-system/
United for Mental Health. (2021). Decriminalising Suicide: Reducing Stigma, Saving Lives. https://unitedgmh.org/the-global-advocate/decriminalising-suicide-saving-lives-reducing-stigma/
Maria (Marysia) Pachowicz
Maria (Marysia) Pachowicz is TASC's Junior Researcher for Health. They have a B.A. in Psychology & Mathematics and an M.Sc. in Applied Psychology from Trinity College Dublin and are particularly interested in mental health and lived experiences of navigating mental healthcare. Maria is a member of the “Sharing the Vision: A Mental Health Policy for Everyone” Reference Group of Service Users and Family Members, where they advise the Department of Health on the implementation of Ireland's national mental health policy, ensuring that the voice of the service user is at the centre of all decisions. They also sat on the Health Research Board Expert Group tasked with producing Ireland’s first National Mental Health Research Strategy and now sit on the Strategy's Implementation and Oversight Group. Maria is a member of the Digital Mental Health Working Group of the International Alliance of Mental Health Research Funders.
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