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

I will share the Sinn Féin slot with Deputy Andrews. On behalf of the two of us, I thank the witnesses for the presentations and also in particular their front-line staff in Dublin, Cork and the south west for the enormous amount of work they have been doing, especially in the very difficult Covid circumstances.

It is hard not to have an appalling sense of déjà vu when we have these conversations, as we do periodically. While the phrase "returning to normal as we exit Covid" is a very good phrase for most people in most aspects of their lives, it is the wrong thing that is currently happening. From everything we have heard in the presentations today, we are slipping back into the pre-Covid set of realities. For me, the worry is that in a committee like this, we can end up getting so focused on the details of the 17 recommendations or a set of proposals that it gets lost. I do not mean to the witnesses or to us but in the wider debate.

This is a tough question, but I wish to ask it of each of the groups represented today, given that we are now seeing an increase in homelessness again. The cold weather initiative will end quite soon and some of those in emergency accommodation that have habitual residency condition issues, as Ms Santoro mentioned, are at risk of homelessness and rough sleeping. If there was one intervention that each of the groups wanted to stress that the Minister should take now, what would be the crucial one so that we do not end up back where we were in 2017 and 2018 with ever-escalating levels of homelessness among families and single people month on month, and an expansion of emergency accommodation in the public and private sectors. There is genuine fear when I look at the loss of properties in the private rental sector, rising rents and in particular the exit figures from the Dublin Region Homeless Executive report on Friday. I am more concerned now than I have been at any other stage since the peak in 2018. I know I am putting the witnesses on the spot. I am keen to hear from Cork Simon as well. Our committee is going to have to do something and to communicate with the Minister and give him some recommendations. Given that most of the 17 recommendations either have not been implemented or have not been fully implemented, it would be helpful if we had a shorter list coming out of this meeting.