Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

The Taoiseach's answer highlights why this is so worrisome in many ways because he correctly states the homeless figures are decreasing but the deaths among homeless people are going in the opposite direction. That is the key issue. The figures are already massively higher than they were in the past two full years. I believe there is a number of reasons for that. If a person is from outside of Dublin and he or she needs help in Dublin, that person is told to go home to his or her own county. Such people cannot go home to their own counties at present because of lockdown and many of them are going on the streets and as a result are coming under fierce pressure on the streets of Dublin.

There is also a problem with the standardisation of homeless services across the State. We have a situation where many providers are doing the best they can but do not have the resources to do it properly, but others need real oversight and to be regulated properly by HIQA.

The truth of the matter and the kernel of my question is, we have a tale of two countries. The most vulnerable are being left behind - people with cancer, people with mental health issues, people on low wages, people working in meat factories, homeless people, asylum seekers and those in nursing homes. In relation to people who are homeless, will the Taoiseach commit today to investigating why there is a significant spike in the number of people who have died homeless in our capital this year?

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