Mr. Aaron O'Connell:

One of the things I would say in response to the Deputy is that not everybody would be looking for the increase at the same time. It would not be true to suggest that everybody would be involved in a way that would lead to a simultaneous spend. In the short term, it would hold people where they are. I think that is the important thing. The other thing to emphasise is that those who are working on the ground with people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness know people in the relevant category and therefore need to have the discretion to increase this payment where they can. There is a difficulty in certain areas even when discretion is available. We mentioned in our submission an example in which the only available accommodation for a single person in Cork cost €925.

Even if the €485 payment that is currently available were topped up by 20%, the gap would not be bridged. This issue needs to be addressed.