Direct Provision Expenditure

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 November 2014

Tuesday, 11 November 2014

Questions (291, 303)

Clare Daly

Question:

291. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the amount of money spent on the direct provision system over the past eight years; and the companies to whom those payments were made. [42845/14]

Richard Boyd Barrett

Question:

303. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if she will provide, in tabular form, a list of contracts awarded, and amounts paid, to the owners and operators of direct provision centres from the establishment of the direct provision system to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42995/14]

Written answers

Minister for Justice and Equality

I propose to take Questions Nos. 291 and 303 together.

The direct provision system is managed by the Reception and Integration Agency (RIA) of my Department. For the most part, this represents a cashless system with the State assuming responsibility for providing suitable accommodation for asylum seekers on a full board basis. Currently, there are approximately 4,300 residents in 34 centres across the State under contract to RIA.

Prior to 2003 payments to management companies in the State-owned sector and contractors in the commercial sector were made by the relevant local authority which in turn recouped that expenditure from the Department of the Environment and Local Government. From 2003 on, RIA has paid the contractors directly. There follows a list showing RIA's expenditure outturn for each of the years 2003 to 2014 inclusive:

Year	Amount
2014 -	€51.9 million (Estimate)
2013 -	€55.228 million
2012 -	€62.329 million
2011 -	€69.459 million
2010 -	€79.073 million
2009 -	€86.509 million
2008 -	€91.472 million
2007 -	€83.262 million
2006 -	€78.728 million
2005 -	€84.382 million
2004 -	€83 million (rounded)
2003 -	€77 million (rounded)

RIA's Annual Reports from 2007 to 2013 inclusive further break down yearly expenditure into the broad headings of 'Commercial', 'State-owned', 'Self-catering', 'Additional Costs', 'Transport' and 'Miscellaneous'. These Annual Reports are published on RIA's website - www.ria.gov.ie.

As has been stated in answers to previous Dáil Questions, for commercial reasons, details of current contract rates are not provided. The policy is that the updating of the table of contracts will take place only at the end of January each year in respect of all financial information up to the end of December two years previously e.g. at the end of January, 2014 the records are updated to end of December 2011. This policy has been upheld by the Office of the Information Commissioner.

I will forward a more detailed table directly to the Deputies under separate cover showing expenditure details on all RIA contracts for accommodation for the period 2000 to the end of 2011 This will also indicate the names of the contractors concerned. Contracts RIA has with providers are 'staggered' so that they end at different times of the year. This allows for flexibility to close centres gradually should numbers begin to decline. The table being provided to the Deputies will show individual contracts and payments from their beginning to end dates and these do not usually coincide with the calendar year.