Pat Casey (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We could get lost in the argument about whether we are looking at 9,500 or 10,300. The regrettable story is that homelessness is increasing. At the end of the day, that is the bottom line. Not only is homelessness increasing, hotels are increasingly being used month on month, which is something we were promised would end in 2017. I do not claim the Department is failing to try. I will never make that statement. The officials are doing everything they can. Clearly, however, we are not getting on top of the homelessness crisis. What are the blockages which are preventing us from dealing with the situation?

I have a bee in my bonnet about HAP tenancies and moving from local authority lists to HAP lists. We then have the homeless HAP list. It is time to scrap the lot and have one list. There is a deterrent out there in that people will not longer take HAP because they will be removed from the council list. We are hearing it in our constituency offices every day. People on local authority lists are afraid to take a HAP tenancy because they will no longer be on the list. They are entitled to a house and they should be on a single list. I do not have the homeless HAP list data in front of me and I will probably be killed for commenting on it. However, if one does the calculation on the number of families who have been housed on the homeless HAP list and the local authority list in the Dublin region, respectively, one will find there is a better percentage chance to get a home on the former. That is another reason to scrap it and have one list on which everyone is treated equally. The figures were presented to us on that last year.

It is frustrating that after two and a half years, we are still sitting here talking about the fact that sufficient data is not collected. When homeless families come to our constituency offices, we ask basic questions. Local authorities interview every homeless family and they also ask these basic questions. All the data are available and it is a matter of collating and presenting them. What is the big issue about data? It is there in every local authority. They ask the questions. They ask if the issue is a notice to quit and, if so, why. Why are we making such an issue of data and waiting for more and more reports? I am tired of reporting at this committee as we have had so much of it.

I will leave it there albeit I might come back in on the second round. The issue here is homelessness. We can argue about the 900 people, but we have an increasing homeless crisis whether we like it. Whether the Minister wants to include the 900, the homelessness rate is increasing. The use of hotel accommodation is increasing. Clearly, we are not getting on top of the housing crisis.