Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I go back to the comments made about identified properties. We see the challenge the Department is facing. Mr. Wilson said using hotel accommodation was a short-term solution. That was in September and already the numbers are growing. Owing to the challenges being faced by the Department, my fear is that it will become a long-term solution. From January to March, the cost was €3.4 million. As the Secretary General rightly said, there is a housing crisis. In identifying suitable accommodation will the hotel aspect become like the housing assistance payment, HAP, scheme when suddenly the cost will spiral out of control? We have the perfect storm with the housing crisis being compounded by the challenges facing the Department in identifying suitable properties such that hotels are becoming a solution when people present. Only God knows to what the cost could rise by the end of the year. In meeting the challenges encountered by the Department on a daily basis I am afraid that using hotel accommodation has become an option. Is my assessment correct? What is the Department's long-term strategy to nip the problem in the bud to prevent using hotel accommodation from becoming a crutch in the way the HAP scheme has in dealing with the housing crisis?