Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I can tell the Deputy clearly that we have not abandoned the idea of reception and integration centres. They remain central to our response. My Department is engaging at the moment with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform about how we can advance the programme, whether through my Department purchasing large existing buildings and converting them into reception and integration centres or going for a scratch build, which will take longer. We are looking at the various fast construction techniques that exist at the moment to increase scale. Ensuring State-controlled accommodation where we have better control over the standards provided within those accommodations is central to the vision of dealing, in particular, with the larger numbers. Those phase 1 reception and integration centres remain central to the Government's response to the needs. With the increased numbers requiring accommodation, those centres are now needed even more. The White Paper provided for five or six reception and integration centres. In light of what I expect will be higher numbers of people seeking international protection in Ireland into the future, there will probably have to be a larger number of centres.

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