The direct provision allowance (DPA) is a non-statutory payment paid by my Department on behalf of the Department of Justice and Equality to protection applicants living in the Direct Provision system. The weekly rate of DPA for children and adults is €21.60. There are currently some 3,430 adults and 1,420 children residing in the system of direct provision in respect of whom the direct provision allowance is being paid. The Government has provided €3.7 million for the allowance, covering adult and children payments, in the Revised Estimates for 2017 with an additional €250,000 made available through the recent Supplementary Estimate giving a total allocation of €3.95 million in 2017.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.