Carol Nolan (Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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6. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government to review the criteria being used by the Dublin homeless executive and the Dublin local authorities to determine whether a household is accepted as in need of emergency accommodation, given the growing number of households being refused emergency accommodation by local authorities only to be subsequently placed in emergency accommodation by the freefone or rough sleeper team. [18509/16]

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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When a family presents as homeless to a local authority, they have to provide evidence of the reason for their homelessness. If they have been put out of private rental accommodation, evidence of notice to quit is sufficient, but the homeless agency tells us that about 28% of families are presenting as a result of family relationship breakdown. It is very difficult for many of these families to provide written evidence unless, for example, a social worker has been involved with them. Will the Minister, with the homeless agency and the four local authorities, review the criteria being used to ensure these families will not be left out on the street?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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One particular case which the Deputy mentioned earlier has triggered this question. I have looked at it and its outcome. Ultimately, it is up to local authorities to make the judgment on whether a family are homeless or not before they provides emergency accommodation for them. It is important that I do not try to micro-manage by telling them what to do. There is a judgment call that needs to be made and the legislation which will guide that judgment is the Housing Act 1988. Clearly, there are huge pressures on councils, particularly in Dublin but also in other parts of the country. They need to make sure the people most in need of emergency accommodation get it first. If there are mistakes made in these judgment calls every now and again, we need to make sure we minimise them. There is a big need to put the emphasis on trying to keep people in their homes through the provision of counselling, support and outreach services in order that the first option is not simply to declare oneself homeless but to try to work through problems within families and so on. Obviously, there are cases of domestic abuse where this is simply not an option and there is a need to protect people by re-homing them and considering and classifying them as homeless. There are two to three cases every day in Dublin alone where Dublin City Council has to make judgment calls and re-house people in emergency accommodation, which is not easy. That is the situation in which we will find ourselves until we can do what I was talking about earlier in what will be a medium term project to dramatically increase supply.

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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Unfortunately, it does not involve just one case. The Focus Ireland intake team carried out research in April and May. In April there were 35 families who were turned away, many of whom were subsequently deemed to be in need of emergency accommodation. They were turned away from the local authority because, acting on the criteria it had been given by the homeless agency, it considered they were not in need, primarily because they had come from their parents' home. The figure increased to 55 in May. Subsequently many of the families concerned were deemed to be in need of emergency accommodation. I am not asking the Minister to micro-manage. He should not be involved in individual decisions, but clearly there is a problem with the guidelines that the homeless agency and the local authorities have developed. However, I am not blaming them. This is the result of the very difficult decisions council staff have had to make when trying to determine if somebody has a need. Ultimately, the problem is the lack of emergency accommodation. There is a need to review the criteria. I urge the Minister to consider that proposition.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The criteria are included in the legislation. The Housing Act 1998 states: "A person shall be regarded by a housing authority as being homeless for the purposes of this Act if (a) there is no accommodation available which, in the opinion of the authority, he, together with any other person who normally resides with him or who might reasonably be expected to reside with him, can reasonably occupy or remain in occupation of, or (b) he is living in a hospital, county home, night shelter or other such institution, and is so living because he has no accommodation of the kind referred to in paragraph (a)". That is legalistic language for making a judgment call on whether an individual or a number of people have a place where they can reside safely. I will speak to the local authorities about this issue. If the Deputy thinks there is a serious need to review the criteria, we will look at them, but we need to make sure the limited spaces we have available in emergency accommodation are prioritised for those most in need of them. We need to make sure we minimise mistakes in not providing emergency accommodation for those who absolutely need it.

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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I absolutely agree with the Minister on the last point. In addition to the legislative criteria, there are criteria on which the homeless agency has worked with the four Dublin local authorities to assist front-line staff in making these very difficult decisions. It is that aspect which needs to be reviewed, not the legislation. I urge the Minister, in addition to talking to the homeless agency, to talk to Focus Ireland and its intake team, to look at the initial research they carried out in April and May this year and to consider whether it provides at least some evidence that what is in place is not working. I am in no way criticising front-line local authority staff. More than anybody else, they know the implications in making a wrong decision, but they are being placed in an impossible position. The guidelines could be improved in the context of the Minister's closing remarks.

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Perhaps the best body with which to raise this issue is the Dublin regional homeless executive which is trying to co-ordinate responses. I will raise it with it and we will have a look at the guidelines. We need to make sure the most genuine cases are prioritised and that we minimise mistakes. There can be serious consequences if and when that happens.