Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2023
55. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to provide an update on the commitment by the Minister of State to develop a national strategy to improve communicating a coherent message around integration; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32481/23]
View answerI ask the Minister for State for an update on the commitment that was made to develop a communications strategy so that a coherent message can be delivered to communities in relation to new communities moving into the area. A commitment was made that a coherent communications strategy would be developed.
Since the beginning of 2022, Ireland and many other European countries have been experiencing a significant increase of new arrivals seeking international protection. As of the 25 June, more than 21,570 people are being accommodated in the International Protection Accommodation Service, IPAS, system as a whole, compared to 12,000 people at this time last year. Combined with that is the arrival of more than 76,000 displaced by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the largest displacement of people in Europe system since the Second World War. More than 65,000 of those people are in State-provided accommodation.
I recognise that there have been some issues with communications in communities where accommodation centres are being established. The Government is working towards addressing those issues by improving advanced communications, where appropriate, for elected representatives, local authorities and local communities. To date, the Department has held 22 online meetings and 17 in-person meetings with local representatives and community groups. Since beginning of 2022, more than 155 emergency accommodation centres have been brought into use by IPAS to provide shelter to seeking international protection. Due to the scale of the present crisis, contracted emergency accommodation for those seeking refuge must be occupied on a faster timeline than would otherwise be the case. While efforts are made to notify public representatives and State agencies in advance of utilising a building for the accommodation of people seeking international protection, the emergency nature of the response means that advanced communications are not always as early as my Department would like. Where possible, before the opening of any facility, the Department engages with local elected representatives to provide information as soon as possible following the agreement of terms with contractors. These constraints limit the time window for advanced consultation.
The Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, officials and I also make significant efforts to engage with community organisations when new centres are opening, to provide information and to dispel any misinformation being circulated. As the Deputy is aware, the Department of the Taoiseach is currently developing a communications strategy and campaign aimed at developing a national model that will help support communication with communities where accommodation centres are opening. I can tell the Deputy a bit more about that shortly.
As the Minister of State is aware, there has been significant turmoil in communities in recent times, particularly here in the capital. Much of that has been exploited by extreme right-wing groups. Unfortunately, some communities have been caught up in the middle of that. Far right groups have exploited a vacuum in terms of a lack of coherent coming from Government. These groups have seized upon vulnerabilities within communities, whether it is a lack of resources or a lack of amenities. That is why it is critical that there is a coherent communications strategy. We have heard time and again the response that the Minister of State gave. I am not blaming him. We have been told that this communications strategy is being developed and spearheaded by the Department of the Taoiseach. I would have thought that by this stage we would have had something to look at and to counter some of the spin and the narrative that is being put out and how it is going to be tackled. The Minister of State might give us an update as to when we will see that strategy.
I will be meeting with officials from the Department of the Taoiseach in the next week to firm up and finalise the plan. The message that will be communicated will be similar to what we consistently communicate in terms of outlining the wider context of what has happened, underlining our international responsibilities and the situations people face, and recognising what communities have done. It is important we recognise that the dominant story has been one of welcome. I held an event in Croke Park two weeks ago, where community organisations from every county in the country came together to share their learning and to build a national movement of welcome. That has been the broader and wider story. That is one key way of keeping those other messages out. We must support communities that want to welcome people and build our capacity to do that. Part of that is giving them information in advance when we are able to do that.
I acknowledge that there is some communication in relation to new centres being opened. That is to be welcomed. I agree that fantastic work is going on in communities where there are welcoming groups that are visiting people and bringing goods and whatever is needed for refugees and internationally displaced persons. That has to be welcomed, but there needs to be a collective approach to tackling that false narrative that some groups are looking to spin. We, in the Opposition, want to be part of that. The communications strategy is going to be key to that. I know the Department of the Taoiseach is developing the strategy, but I ask for a commitment from the Minister of State that when it is put in place, there will be a cross-party briefing for the Opposition to be part of it, because we need to be included in that. I also ask for a commitment in terms of communications with local authorities. They need to be a key component of this. I refer not just to the elected representatives, but also the officials within the local authorities.
I will certainly bring that request to the meeting next week. I think it is a reasonable one. I want to point to a few statistics that are relevant. In the last three months, we have opened 33 new international protection accommodation centres and 88 beneficiaries of temporary protection centres. That is a total of 111 centres that have been opened in the last three months. The response has, by large, been very good across communities. I thank An Garda Síochána for providing us with updated statistics on protests over about six months, which peaked in January. That number halved in the month of June when 32 protests were recorded in the greater Dublin area. That figure was well into the 70s in January. We are not getting complacent. The risk is always there, but I think the work is improving. The community recognition fund introduced by the Department of Rural and Community Development has also, in a very tangible way, acknowledged the contributions and efforts communities across the country have made by improving local infrastructure and community facilities.
