Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree wholeheartedly that the number of rough sleepers is only a symptom, an indication of a far more deeply rooted problem. However, the fact that the number of rough sleepers is slowly but surely reducing gives some hope that the overall issue of homelessness is being addressed in a meaningful way. The fact that last year 880 people moved from homelessness to independent living is another very strong indication that this Government has every intention of meeting its aim to end long-term homelessness by the end of 2016.

Homelessness funding, at a time when resources are extremely limited, has been substantially protected over the last number of years. This fact is important in the context of the wide-scale pressure for reductions in government spending across all Departments. The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government has been overseeing State and local government expenditure exceeding €50 million per year in respect of the running costs of homeless facilities and associated services. There is also a considerable capital investment in homeless services on an annual basis. In addition, the HSE is spending over €30 million in respect of health and personal social care related supports.

The Government has every intention of meeting that target and the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, has the full support of the Government in that regard. The significant improvements that have been made over the past 24 months are a strong indication that the Government will meet that target by 2016.

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