Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. Her commentary and some of the debate on this issue in recent days has become somewhat detached from the reality we find ourselves confronted with. We need to be very clear about what this is all about, what has happened, where we are and where we go from here. The first thing that has to be done is to acknowledge and pay tribute to the extraordinary Irish national effort in response to Putin's illegal and immoral invasion of his neighbour, Ukraine. We have all watched in horror as this man has ordered ruthless attacks on civilians by air, land and sea, displacing up to 7.2 million people all over Europe. He is doing it with greater intensity now by raining down drones on the people of Ukraine and their energy infrastructure. We have responded to that terror with unprecedented warmth, generosity and support. More than 55,000 Ukrainians have sought and received refuge in our country, one of the highest figures within the EU, which the Deputy does not acknowledge. She calls it a disaster, which is extraordinary language to be using. Approximately 43,000 of those are being accommodated by the State in various ways. In addition, we have accommodated 9,000 seeking international protection. This number will rise to about 14,000 by the end of the year. That is not a story of failure; it is a story of families in every corner of this country and communities across this country opening their homes and hearts to people who are fleeing war. That is the story of Ireland's response to the war in Ukraine. The Deputy should not try to have it both ways and try to play crude domestic politics. It is a story of a massive effort by our public servants across the board, across Government and across the country. It is a story about people understanding how much it means to help people fleeing war in another land.

We need to be careful of the implications of how this gets articulated. The only person I see who would get solace from what the Deputy said and the manner in which she said it is Putin himself. That is what Putin wants to do. He wants to create the impression across Europe that Europe cannot cope with or manage this. That is why the Iranian drones are being dropped all over Ukraine right now, destroying energy infrastructure. It is because Putin wants to make life unbearable for Ukrainians and the country and uninhabitable. Therefore, we have to make sure that he does not succeed with that agenda. Right across the board, we have provided a range of accommodation options, not just one, and we will continue to do so. We will continue to work in solidarity with our EU colleagues in terms of the directive to protect and do everything we can to help Ukrainians fleeing war. That will be achieved through a range of options, including procuring accommodation, building fresh accommodation and reconfiguring buildings. There will be challenges along the way and there will be ups and downs and bumps along the road. Of that, let there be no doubt. This will be the case throughout Europe; it is not an Irish phenomenon. Many other capital cities and countries are challenged by this unprecedented humanitarian crisis, brought about by the war in Ukraine. It is unprecedented since the Second World War to have millions of people displaced and forced out of their homes by a war. That is the context. I do not accept the Deputy's analysis of it at all.

In some respects as well, I note that the Deputy has intertwined this issue with the housing crisis. The only incompetent thing I saw in recent weeks was a suggestion that we should do what the former UK Government did in regard to energy.

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