Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for tabling this amendment, which is similar but not identical to the previous one. It affords me the opportunity to mention a couple of things with regard to the work I have been doing with my colleague, the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman. I recognise the commitment in the programme for Government to ending direct provision. The Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, has done an incredible amount of work on that, into which we fed through the White Paper and the process with Catherine Day. We are really focused on doing it.

I have already agreed with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, and we have set up a mechanism to look at this, so there is a focus on housing those with direct provision and the main responsibility would lie with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. We will assist in that process very specifically with the Housing Agency. That has been put into the White Paper. The Housing Agency and the expertise will provide expert advise on sourcing, delivering and managing housing and accommodation.

Our local authorities have already quietly been doing much work in this space over recent years for those whose status has been regularised, helping them source permanent accommodation. The Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, is engaging in that. There will potentially be elements of change within that as to how local authorities interact with the asylum seeker process, and that has been outlined in the White Paper.

While I fully understand and respect the intent here, it might be premature in the process to tie this in right now. I would be happy to come back with a detailed note in advance of the next Stage on the work we have been doing with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, and on how the Housing Agency will work with the local authorities and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. We know we need to provide a certain number of homes each year in this space. We are focused on ending direct provision for those who have languished in it for far too long. We are committed to that and the Ministers, Deputies O'Gorman and McEntee, and I have met on this issue. We are committed to doing everything we can to ensure we make good on the commitment in the programme for Government. Much detailed work has been done already in this space.

I am happy to provide a briefing to members on this to see how we could move this on. It is similar but not the same as the previous issue because we are well advanced on a new phase of ending direct provision and I do not want to do anything that might further complicate that matter in relation to the focus the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman's Department has shown in this space.

I assure colleagues we are assisting in every way we can and have agreed that the Housing Agency will have a specific role with regard to sourcing, delivery and management of housing and accommodation to ensure those in indirect provision can exit from it.