Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 November 2023
324. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will contact local and national Traveller organisations to assess the level of difficulty Travellers have in accessing social housing lists; if he will further initiate appropriate research to meet his Department’s outstanding commitment on this matter since 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52119/23]
View answerThe Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998 provides that the role of my Department is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to assist housing authorities in providing accommodation for Travellers, including a national framework of policy, legislation and funding.
As part of the work of the Programme Board, established to drive the implementation of the recommendations of the Expert Review report, work is ongoing on a number of actions in relation to social housing for members of the Traveller community. In particular, the Social Housing Assessment (Amendment) Regulations 2022 came into operation on 14 March 2022 allowing for the inclusion of a Traveller identifier on the statutory Social Housing Support application. This will support the monitoring and oversight of assessment and allocations to members of the Travelling community.
