The number of adults in Northern Ireland who think relations between Protestants and Catholics are improving has fallen to its lowest level in 17 years.
Some 39% of those surveyed believe relations across the religious divide are better now than five years ago, according to Stormont's latest Good Relations Indicators report.
The figure for 2019 was a 4% drop on the previous year and the lowest it has been since 2002 when the proportion was 30%.
Read more: Stormont recall: Here is what MLAs would have discussed had the Assembly been restored
Among young people, there was no significant change compared to the previous 12 months, with 44% in 2019 saying relations were better than five years ago.
The Good Relations Indicator report compiles a range of statistics from different sources, such as hate crime figures and attitudes to mixing in schools, neighbourhoods and the workplace.
It monitors changes against the Stormont Executive's "Together: Building a United Community" (T:BUC) strategy, which was launched in 2013 in a bid to improve cross-community relations.
Just over a quarter of adults (28%) in 2019 said they believed relations between Protestants and Catholics would be better in five years' time - the lowest proportion since the launch of the T:BUC strategy.
The figure was 34% among young people - the second-lowest proportion since 2013.
Alliance MLA Kellie Armstrong said: "It is disappointing that after years of good relations development, relationships between the two main religions has fallen and we now see that 24 years after the Good Friday Agreement the political tensions between religions has grown further apart.
"Alliance would like to see investment in good relations to develop community solutions and build cohesion. More must be done to bring single identity communities together, to build a shared society."
Some 63% of respondents said they see town centres as safe and welcoming places for people of all walks of life, a 4% drop compared to 2018.
A total of 91% said they feel safe going to events held in a Protestant secondary school; 89% to events in a Catholic secondary school; 70% to a GAA club; and 66% to an Orange Hall.
In education, 54% of young people said they have carried out projects with pupils from other schools where students are from a different religious background.
Some 52% have shared classes with pupils from other schools, while 26% have shared sports facilities or equipment.
For shared community spaces, 90% of adults said leisure centres in their area are "shared and open" to both Catholics and Protestants. The figure was 92% for parks, 95% for libraries and 96% for shopping centres.
A total of 88% of respondents said they would prefer a mixed religion workplace, 77% a mixed religion neighbourhood and 61% mixed religion schools.
On cultural expression, 76% said the culture and traditions of Protestant communities add to the richness and diversity of Northern Ireland society, while 73% thought this about Catholic communities and 61% about minority ethnic communities.
READ NEXT:
- Stormont recall: Here is what MLAs would have discussed had the Assembly been restored
Bilingual signs vandalised 300 times in five years costing councils almost £40,000
East Belfast non-binary bisexual speaks out after series of homophobic hate crimes
- NI violence against women strategy "must be start of something important"
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here. To sign up to our FREE newsletters, see here.
