Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

My question concerns the number of children in emergency accommodation. In October the number was 3,826 and now we approach Christmas 2019. I had proposed to put this question to the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs but it was transferred this afternoon to the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government for reply at a later date. It was to be a priority question. I am going to ask the Taoiseach the question instead.

In July 2016, I suggested to the Minister for Children and Family Affairs in a parliamentary question that the spectre of 2,177 children being housed in emergency accommodation was a blight on the nation. With projected figures of 4,026 children in such accommodation by this Christmas, I asked how the Minister would respond to the appalling deterioration in the figures. Of course I am now asking the Taoiseach instead of the Minister, who transferred the question.

In a similar question that I put to the Minister in 2016, she replied that the Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, which had just been published, had an ambition that within one year we would not be reliant on emergency accommodation to house children and families. She went on to outline the support services that would be put in place to support those children until mid-2017, when they would no longer be in emergency accommodation. The services included access to early years services, education and nutritional needs, Tusla services, and supports for pregnant women. The Minister intended to move towards a sense of normality for those children. It was to be a political priority to avoid lasting damage to these children.

Of course, the fundamental solution to addressing child homelessness is to provide them with a home, not to rely on emergency accommodation. That was to be phased out by mid-2017 but it has worsened. Instead of having 2,177 children homeless, we now have 3,826 and the number is rising. When one considers that children move in and out of homelessness on a frequent basis, the figure is probably far greater than the 3,826 who are affected. This is my question to the Taoiseach: how does he respond to this appalling deterioration in child homelessness figures?

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