Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank all Deputies for their contributions. I do not doubt their sincerity in trying to find solutions to this very complex issue. I too want to offer my condolences to the family and friends of Jonathan Corrie. It is quite shocking that he died so close to where we operate every day in trying to solve these issues. I do not want to turn this into a political shouting match because that would not be appropriate. This is a political Chamber, but there are some topics for which we need to find solutions without dropping down to political point-scoring.

The reasons many people are homeless are complex, and sometimes the solutions have to be. If there were an easy solution to deal with every individual who is homeless, I would have made sure it happened. There is no best practice for homelessness. I have taken a number of actions as Minister and have prioritised this issue. Meetings about social housing and, in particular, homelessness, take place with Dublin City Council at 9 a.m. every Monday. A Cabinet sub-committee meets to discuss this issue on a regular basis. Many fairly positive actions have been taken.

For instance, in the next few months another 655 voids - social housing units that have been closed up - will be opened up. This alone could provide enough units for people homeless in this city. It is scandalous these units have been left void as they are the quickest way to turn around the situation in this city. I prioritised the return to use of these units immediately I took on this role.

I have changed the allocation policy in regard to homelessness. For instance, I have told local authorities in Dublin that 25% of allocations should be based on the homeless. I have increased the budget by 20%, bringing it to over €55 million, the highest ever. Just 12 or 14 days ago, I provided a further €4 million to Dublin City Council for homelessness, despite the fact that the council rejected a proposal to increase the budget for homelessness. We are all aware supply is the critical issue and we must ensure we have a greater supply for the future. Hence the policy announced last week and the €3.8 billion to provide for the new strategy in the medium and long term. We have also announced the Housing First service, which is being provided through Focus Ireland and the Peter McVerry Trust and will provide support for the homeless and those with specific needs. Some 164 more emergency beds will be supplied in the coming weeks, bringing supply to in excess of 1,500 beds.

I would like to see the intervention mechanism run in Dublin by Threshold rolled out further. It concerns itself with people in vulnerable situations who might be about to become homeless and intervenes and negotiates on their behalf, via the local authority and landlords etc. It has dealt successfully with more than 200 cases in recent months. I would like to see this rolled out throughout the country because the intervention tactic works well. In more than 90% of these cases, the rent supplement has been increased. This initiative was targeted, but we need to become more involved in intervention.

There is a plan in place to deal with homelessness and this plan was in place long before the social housing strategy was announced last week. I have announced a coming together on Thursday of the key players to discuss how we can maximise everything that is being done. I am not convinced it is all about funding, but if there is a requirement for funding, I will go to Cabinet and demand more funding. The processes are at play here. We need a greater coming together of everyone working on this issue - the Department, the Government, local authorities, the NGOs and other organisations - to ensure people do not fall between stools and to ensure we intervene where necessary.

It is not just an issue of providing accommodation. If that was all it was about, I am confident we could do that. There are solutions to provision through NAMA and other sources, but the issue is more complex. Each individual circumstance is different. It is about providing complex solutions that work and initiating a process that will ensure they always work. There must be continual interception in order that people are not made homeless one night, then we intervene, but one week later they are homeless again. A complex solution is required.

The actions we have taken are good, but the issue now is that we must work closely with the NGOs and other agencies to ensure that all of the processes intercept those who are vulnerable to the maximum possible. That is the ambition behind our planned meeting on Thursday. I have meetings every week on the issue of homelessness. Officials from the Department meet officials from Dublin City Council and local authorities every Monday morning at 9 o'clock on the issue of homelessness. This is not about another strategy or plan. It is about taking direct and immediate action to help those whom everyone in this House agrees we should help.

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