Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independents 4 Change) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to meet representatives of Cena. I have heard about the organisation but I have never had an opportunity to hear about its work.

Cena, as approved housing body, is now a statutory body. How much money does it receive? How many people work for Cena full-time? We heard about apprenticeships and having architects come on board. How does Cena operate?

The map shows that four properties have been bought. Did Cena link with local authorities to buy these properties? The maps also shows that nine homes have been built. Did local authorities or private contractors build these homes? Cena is seeking 22 homes in the Cork, Kerry and Limerick areas. Where will they be located? Will they be in housing estates?

Mr. Dillon made the interesting point that this crisis has been long in the making and it will not be easy to solve it quickly. Trying to plan for the future is also a major problem. People have been living on halting sites for 20 years. They have had children who have grown up and married and now live in caravans on the sites and have their own children. Does Cena tack that from the point of view of these families and their future accommodation needs?

The opening statement of the Simon Communities notes that "all public bodies in Ireland have responsibility to promote equality". Is there a reason for including this statement given that it could easily have been left out? Do some bodies not promote equality? Have the Simon Communities found that landlords with just one or two houses or investment funds discriminate against Travellers? Where does discrimination occur?

The committee met retailers when discussing the issue of employment who told us that they had a few employers who promote the employment of Traveller women and men in their workplaces. Could something similar be done with landlords? Could we get a few landlords together to promote the message that no one, whether a person of colour, a Traveller, a single parent or anyone else, should be discriminated against?