Bernard Allen
Question:188 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the full addresses of the new locations planned for the accommodation of refugees and asylum seekers. [3846/02]
Written Answers. - Refugee Accommodation.
In accordance with well established Government policy and in order to meet the ongoing requirements to provide accommodation for newly arriving asylum seekers, the reception and integration agency of my Department is continually assessing potential facilities in all areas of the country. A key element of this assessment is the need to ensure that within the parameters of the overall serious shortage of accommodation, direct provision facilities are procured and brought into service by reference to their size commensurate with town, city and regional population.
In recent months, the number of new applications for asylum has, on average, been of the order of 850 per month and the task of providing direct provision accommodation for them is both onerous and ongoing. The construction of a system built facility at the site of the former Cork Airport Hotel, Kinsale Road has already been signalled, and in accordance with Government policy, the construction of similar type facilities in other areas of the State is currently being addressed. Beyond that, I am not in a position at this stage to give further details on the location of these or other planned facilities.