Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 July 2022
1388. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of Ukrainians in the State under the Temporary Protection Directive being accommodated by his Department that are being accommodated in tents or prefabricated structures. [41028/22]
View answer1389. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the steps that he is taking to move Ukrainians in the State under the Temporary Protection Directive being accommodated by his Department from tents or prefabricated structures. [41029/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1388 and 1389 together.
Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine on 24 February, and the invoking of the temporary protection Directive by the European Union shortly afterwards, my Department has worked intensively as part of the cross-governmental response to the Ukraine crisis.The operational challenges brought about by responding to the conflict are significant. Our country has never experienced an influx of displaced persons like the one that we have seen over the past months. My Department’s role is focused on the immediate, short-term accommodation needs of those who have fled here.
To date, more than 42,000 people have arrived in Ireland and in excess of 31,000 of those have been referred to us seeking accommodation from the State. Numbers seeking international protection have also increased adding to accommodation capacity issues.
Overseeing provision of accommodation on this scale during this timeframe for all those who require it remains immensely challenging. Due to the urgent need to source accommodation, a broad range of accommodation types have been contracted, including emergency accommodation. While I recognise this is not ideal, the priority is to place people fleeing the conflict in safe and secure accommodation.
The site in Gormanston has tented accommodation with a capacity for 320 people. Additional sites are under examination by my Department, including some that will involve tented accommodation. I am not aware of any pre-fabricated structures in use, although given the wide range of sites being utilised, it is not possible to exclude that a small number of individuals are being accommodated in structures that could fall into this category. My Department continues to exhaust all efforts to source suitable accommodation for people fleeing the conflict in Ukraine.
