Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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Brú Aimsir was opened as a temporary facility in 2015 on Thomas Street in Dublin city centre. The building is owned by the Digital Hub Development Agency and it was always envisaged it would be a temporary facility. I raise the matter not to argue that it should be a permanent facility but to give the Minister of State the opportunity to put on record the arrangements being made for the 95 people who have been recently using the service. It is primarily a night-to-night facility and it deals with single homeless people, many of whom have other complex needs. Having visited the facility and knowing the good work done by Depaul, I realise a very good service is being provided by the support team.

Will the Minister of State confirm that the facility is closing and when it will close? What arrangements are in place to meet the temporary accommodation needs of the 95 people using the facility? I am not asking him to say where the people are moving to but I would like some reassurance on who will provide the support. Will it be Depaul or other agencies? How is that being managed? I appreciate that moving emergency facilities is always difficult and there are a range of considerations, both for the service provider, the Dublin Region Homeless Executive, DRHE, and the Department. Nevertheless, I was a little surprised to find out earlier this week that the closure of Brú Aimsir was imminent, and a little more transparency might have made it a little easier for everybody. Will the Minister of State address why the decision was taken?

The broader issue is the monthly homeless figures, which were finalised with the Department yesterday and are with the Minister now. If the Minister of State in a position to give any information on those, as they have not yet been published on the Department's website, we might be able to have a conversation about the broader homeless crisis in my response.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter and for the opportunity to clarify what is happening. I do not have the numbers referred to by the Deputy but I am happy to discuss the general point. We naturally hope the good work happening during each month is demonstrated in the figures. Although the figures are far too high, quite a number of families are helped at a much earlier stage now and we find them homes much more quickly. The numbers are still high, as both we and the Deputy know, so there is no disputing that. Progress is made every month working with different families, so I hope that will be evident in the figures coming in the days or weeks ahead.

The homeless hostel mentioned operated from Brú Aimsir since 2015. As the Deputy mentioned, this was always intended to be a temporary facility and was due to close at the end of March 2016. However, the closure was subsequently deferred and is only taking place now in the context of the DRHE having put in place additional enhanced facilities for those who used the service. The DRHE is continuously working to ensure there is an adequate supply of emergency accommodation so there is shelter available for those at risk of rough sleeping. At least 200 new permanent emergency beds have been introduced in the Dublin region each year under Rebuilding Ireland. At all times we try to ensure there are enough beds in the system, as well as upgrading those beds and making them more suitable for the needs of people. Every year we engage with non-governmental organisations, NGOs, and service providers to try to ensure we have enough capacity in the system, which I believe we do. The capacity is generally there.

Brú Aimsir had capacity to accommodate 105 individuals and the DRHE has opened 120 new beds to replace those previously provided at this facility. By 10 July, the executive will increase the supply of new emergency beds by a further 45. This will mean 165 new beds will have been provided. The majority of the new beds being put in place will be supported temporary accommodation, where individuals will be provided with a 24-hour service and will receive the housing and health supports they need to exit homelessness. It is a more enhanced service than they received at Brú Aimsir. It is still very much a temporary emergency service, and I am not saying people would want to live there permanently. However, it is better that this will be a 24-hour service and people will not be asked to leave in the morning. We try to ensure to provide that option in most of our emergency bed accommodation.

I assure the Deputy and others that the DRHE has confirmed that nobody in Brú Aimsir will be left without accommodation. We have engaged with Depaul in that regard to ensure nobody will be left without accommodation. Supporting rough sleepers is a priority for the Government. We also recognise that many of those engaged in rough sleeping have significant health support needs, particularly in the area of mental health and addiction. The Deputy referenced the other needs of these individuals. In addition, we are focused on the delivery of long-term solutions for these individuals beyond providing emergency accommodation, which is of course essential but must be matched by the necessary wrap-around support services.

We have introduced a Housing First model in Ireland that has worked quite well in other countries, namely Finland, Canada and elsewhere. It is a good model and I am glad it is rolling out in a few other countries this month and next month as well. The Government introduced the Housing First national implementation plan, which is a joint initiative of the Departments of Housing, Planning and Local Government and Health, the HSE and local authorities. The plan enables rough sleepers and long-term users of emergency accommodation, who have complex needs, to obtain permanent secure accommodation with the provision of intensive supports to help them maintain their tenancies. The plan sets targets to create more than 660 Housing First tenancies in the period to 2021. It is all the better if we can do more but that is certainly the minimum.

Prior to the national implementation plan being launched, Housing First operated as a pilot project in Dublin. The Dublin region Housing First service has housed 276 homeless individuals to date, 87% of whom have successfully retained housing, which is a major positive. Following a tendering process by the DRHE, the Peter McVerry Trust will operate this service to deliver a further 400 Housing First tenancies over the next three years. A complementary street outreach service operated by Dublin Simon Community is assertively engaging with people who are sleeping rough in the Dublin region to support them into temporary accommodation and long-term housing options. Both services commenced on 1 June. Addressing the complex needs of rough sleepers and people in emergency accommodation will continue to be given the highest priority by the Government. We have personnel on the streets every night of the week trying to encourage rough sleepers to avail of services.

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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The DRHE put it on record earlier this week that nobody would be left without accommodation. The questions I hope the Minister of State will answer are a little more detailed so perhaps I will go through them again. We know the facility is closing but when will that happen? It is an important piece of information. My understanding is that prior to it closing, it will have approximately 95 residents. I would like to be assured that not only will they all have a roof over their heads but that the location they are going to will be appropriate in that it should at least be within the city centre. Support services must continue, whether provided by Depaul or others. I have had some conversations with Dublin City Council officials and they have told me approximately 70 of the individuals will move from the night-to-night facilities to locations with 24-hour service provision. Will the Minister of State confirm if that is the case and who is making that provision? That would be welcome.

A further 25 individuals will go to supported temporary accommodation, which I presume are six-month placements with a private room or at least a room only shared with one individual. Will the Minister of State confirm that? Will he also confirm that all the accommodation that these individuals will go to will be run by voluntary sector providers and that hotels or temporary private sector emergency accommodation will not be used? There is no suggestion that will happen but if he puts it on the record, it would be welcome.

His reply mentions increasing the capacity by 120 beds. Is he saying those 120 beds that were opened had not been occupied prior to the winding down of Brú Aimsir and they were opened specifically for the purpose of accommodating, in the first instance, the 95 to 105 individuals who on any given night would be in the hostel? Are they other beds that have been opened? I am seeking the maximum amount of information and my intentions are genuine. What I am hearing from Dublin City Council is giving me less cause for concern than when I first heard the news. Nevertheless, the more information that can be put in the public domain, the better it would be for everybody, and particularly those who use the Brú Aimsir service.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Ó Broin seems to have plenty of information but I understand he wants to put it on the record of the House, and there is no problem doing that. If I do not have the full answers to any of the questions he asked, I will get them for him.

My understanding is that they are 120 new beds to replace the previous beds and that they will be run by different service providers. I cannot give the Deputy a list. I have a fair idea of the locations but I will not put them on the record, and I am conscious the Deputy did not ask for the individual locations. They are run by a number of different organisations and I can get that list for him also.

To clarify again, these will be enhanced services providing 24-hour beds in most cases and beds for longer periods in other cases. With all our emergency provision our aim to ensure that 24-hour option is available, and the six-month option in many other cases, which is much better for many clients. Everybody agrees it is not ideal that people have to leave 24-hour emergency accommodation the next morning, so that is our aim. In total, there will be 165 new beds - 120 plus another 45 beds that I understand will open on 10 July. The aim was that the facility would close today, 27 June. I presume that has happened. It takes a little time to make sure everything is managed properly, but that was the intention. There are places and I believe the majority are quite close in location and all the services will be available also.

The Deputy asked some other questions.

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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Are they dorms or single beds? Is there the same distribution of-----

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I do not have the breakdown as to whether they are dorms or single beds. I will get that information for the Deputy. It is possibly a combination of both.

Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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And the male-female split as well.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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I do not have that but, if possible, I will get it for the Deputy. I want to be clear. All Deputies know, because they engage frequently with the NGOs, that we would prefer people not to stay on the streets. There are beds available. We make sure there is extra capacity in the system and that there is a bed available for everybody. During major weather events more people come in but on a nightly basis our teams are out on the streets asking people to come in to avail of these beds. We would rather they would come in to use our services so that we can work with them to find more long-term solutions. If it was shown that we needed more capacity, we would provide that. There is no restriction on what we can provide in terms of capacity because we want people to come in and use the service. I believe the Deputy knows that in his heart also. It is important people know that because that is what they would expect of us.