Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 March 2024
1089. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the reason emergency measures to temporarily house international protection applicants who are sleeping rough were lifted; and the method used to determine when such measures should be ended. [11670/24]
View answerIn response to the recent extreme weather, the Department of Integration provided temporary shelter for International Protection (IP) applicants who had been rough sleeping. This was done at a number of locations, some of which were night-time only. The arrangements were emergency in nature and ended after the 3rd March 2024.
It is important to note that recent commentary related to available beds in the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) system are inaccurate. All available beds are being utilised at present. Where beds are not being utilised this can be for a number of reasons and includes family configuration, capacity to support triage and reception processes or accommodation for families and children arriving in the coming days.
Department officials are working to bring more bed spaces into use. For context, at the end of January 2022 IPAS had 8,300 bed spaces in use; it now has approximately 28,000 beds in use. This does not account for further beds that had been provided to International Protection (IP) applicants in the interim in hotels that have since returned these beds to tourism.
Intensive efforts are being undertaken daily by staff in DCEDIY to source emergency accommodation. However, procuring enough bed space to keep pace with incoming arrivals remains extremely challenging, leading to the current accommodation shortage.
All IP applicants who present to the International Protection Office (IPO) during this period are assessed by IPAS and HSE staff for significant vulnerabilities and health issues, and prioritised for accommodation as necessary.
Drop-in day services are provided to all non-accommodated persons who wish to avail of them. In such centres, IP applicants can access facilities including hot showers, meals and laundry services seven days a week.
The Department has arrangements in place for the provision of these services with Mendicity, Crosscare, Capuchin Day Centre and Tiglin at the Lighthouse. The Department is in also in regular contact with the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive, the Dublin Simon Community, Streetlink Homeless Support Outreach service and others, particularly with regard identification of particularly vulnerable individuals.
