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

This week, we mark a grim milestone for Ukraine, which has withstood three brutal years of invasion, occupation and displacement. Millions of lives have been turned upside down. We speak today during another dark chapter in this story, namely, the faltering support of the United States and President Trump's shameful capitulation to Putin's agenda.

I remember this week three years ago. I remember the bewildered people literally arriving through the doors of the Department of integration on Baggot Street because they thought they had nowhere else to go. Shellshocked and landed in a country on the other side of Europe, I remember the looks of relief and gratitude when they learned that they would immediately be given shelter, clothing and food, and that their children would go to school. It was an incredibly difficult time for them. In those initial intense weeks, the State mobilised rapidly to put in place a huge humanitarian response to cope with the thousands of arrivals each week - 6,000 per week at the highest point. I recall the hundreds of civil servants in the Department of children, other Departments and Government agencies who got up from their desks and went to Citywest. One day they were working in corporate affairs, childcare policy or youth participation and the next day they were assisting families to find bed spaces, ensuring children could be enrolled in schools and scouring the country for new accommodation. It was an incredible act of humanitarianism by the Irish State and one which has been sustained now for three years.

How we best sustain that effort in a way that keeps support alive for the many thousands of Ukrainian refugee families who will remain here after the expiry of the temporary protection directive is critical. At present over 15,000 households are in receipt of the accommodation recognition payment, ARP. It is supporting close to 35,000 people and we know that the Minister and the Government are reviewing that payment amid calls from some in this House to abolish it altogether. The creation of a sharp cliff edge here would have profoundly negative consequences for thousands of Ukrainians living in our country. It is essential that the Government rapidly clarify that it will continue the ARP and give certainty to the families and the hosts who depend on it. Time is running out and it is not fair for the Government to keep these people in such a state of uncertainty.

The Government also needs to put in place clear plans for when the temporary protection directive finally expires. It would be valuable for the Minister for Justice to come to the House and outline the position the Government is taking at EU level regarding how Ukrainians will be treated once the directive expires. These decisions will need to be made in less than a year and we need to understand now how the Government plans to respond to this situation.

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