Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

There are many disturbing and unacceptable aspects to the homelessness crisis but undoubtedly one of the worst of them is the number of children living in homeless situations. It is difficult to overstate how much the State is letting down children who have to endure emergency accommodation and homelessness, particularly for long periods.

I have raised multiple times in here the case of a young woman with her son who has been in homeless accommodation for four years. Nobody should be in homeless accommodation and it is a failing of the State that people are, but I ask that priority be put on looking at people in such accommodation for lengthy periods, particularly children. What is the State going to do to forensically audit those in that situation? What additional efforts will the State make to help those families and children to get out of that situation? It is unacceptable that children should be in this appalling situation for long periods. The damage it is doing to children will be lifelong. Will the Taoiseach focus on that aspect and tell us what he can do or is willing to do to address that unacceptable situation?

See this speech in context