Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Whether something is a shortcoming or a failing should not be a matter for debate. We all acknowledge that these are terrible situations which people are in.

With reference to children in emergency accommodation, the solution is housing supply. This year 8,000 additional homes will be added to the social housing stock, more than half of which were built by local authorities and housing associations, with the others being acquired or leased. Eight thousand is a big increase on the figures for previous years and 10,000 will be delivered next year. We are also expanding the family hub programme which I know is not an alternative to a home, but we do know that families who spend time in family hubs tend to spend less than six months in them and tend to move on much quicker than those who are in hotels.

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