Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the Minister of State, Deputy English, in that we need to deal with the facts. I have three questions but I want to make three observations first.

The Taoiseach said over the weekend that our levels of homelessness are low when compared to our peers. That is a fact. When he was pressed by the journalist at the press event, he referenced the 2017 OECD report. The 2017 OECD report is a short and easy report to read. It makes explicitly clear in its first page that there is no standard definition of homelessness between the listed OECD states. It states that there is a wide variety of categories of homelessness. Anyone who knows how we categorise homelessness, that is, by using the section 10 emergency-funded accommodation category, knows that we have one of the narrowest definitions in the OECD. The OECD report states that we cannot compare from state to state. Let us flip on two pages in the report to the table provided by the OECD. It states clearly that the figures for Ireland are 2015 figures. We all know that the figures have doubled since then.

This is not a row about statistics. If we are going to find solutions to tackle the problem, we need to understand the depth and extent of the problem. It is extremely unwise of the Taoiseach and the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government to try to use a report to make a claim publicly that the same report does not support - that is all I am saying. The Taoiseach did it again twice yesterday. He contradicted Deputy Mary Lou McDonald, because he said the report was a 2017 report, and he is right. However, the figures are from 2015 and that is written in the report. The Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy Murphy, should acknowledge that. Prior to the Taoiseach's comments, when we have debated the matter on two or three occasions in the House the Minister has referenced that we have a lower level of homelessness when compared to our peers. There is no evidence to support that.