Cyprian Brady (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the important issue of homelessness. We tend to take our homes for granted but being homeless is not just a matter of bricks and mortar or four walls and a roof. The comfort of family and neighbours, safety in a community, access to health and education services and a sense of hope are also important. There are complex reasons behind an individual becoming homeless, especially where addiction or mental illness is involved. However, homelessness can also result from simple circumstances.

When it comes to hostel and bed and breakfast accommodation, we have to reconsider the definition of homelessness. I have encountered individuals and families who had to leave their bed and breakfast accommodation at 9 a.m. and remain on the streets until evening, sometimes purely because of bureaucracy.

Addressing homelessness involves providing people with the resources they need to make a choice. There will always be exceptions to the rules or people who do not fit into a box, and some will try to take advantage of the system. The people who make decisions on the problems associated with homelessness must be given the flexibility to make allowances for exceptional circumstances. It is not easy to accommodate a person with, for example, addiction related needs. A multi-agency approach is required, as well as understanding and support from the wider community.

Appropriate accommodation and back-up services on an ongoing basis in health, employment and education are in the interest of everybody, not only clients of homeless services. The Government has done a great deal of work on social inclusion but if somebody is to be socially included, he or she has to be accepted by the community rather than highlighted as different. Unfortunately, some organisations fail in this area, giving rise to problems for the individuals concerned and for the wider community.

I wish to make a special plea with regard to health services for homeless people. The vast majority of homeless people do not have medical cards, so when they fall ill, they are usually referred by a GP or brought by ambulance to an accident and emergency department, where they tend to spend more time than other patients. For various reasons, they also spend more time in the general hospital system. However, when they recover, they are sent back out to the cold and rain in a vicious circle. I congratulate Dr. Austin O'Carroll and his colleagues in the Mountjoy Street Family Practice on the submission they have made with regard to providing an intermediate care centre for homeless people which could offer a range of statutory, treatment and back-up services in a central location. However, that is only one part of an array of necessary measures because there is no quick-fix solution to this problem.

While the overall number of homeless people has decreased and significant progress has been made, as the amendment notes and organisations dealing with homelessness acknowledge, statistics indicate that the age at which people become homeless is decreasing, the number of homeless females is increasing and people tend to be homeless for longer periods. Drug addiction and its accompanying ailments, such as blood infections and transmissible diseases, are increasingly prevalent among homeless people. Some 64% of homeless people have used drugs at some stage, while a quarter continue to use drugs. I commend Focus Ireland, the Simon Community, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Threshold and the other agencies who deal with these complex and difficult issues on a daily basis.

Providing a home is a more complex matter than merely giving someone a room and, in this regard, I commend Dublin City Council on its close collaboration with homeless agencies and the successful initiatives, such as the night bus, which it has taken. I encourage the council to continue to explore the issue of single person accommodation, although accommodation must also be provided to families. While Dublin City Council has taken several successful initiatives on the north side of the city to provide social housing for young families, single person accommodation remains a significant issue in the inner city. Many single people who lack a home tend to congregate in the inner city because that is where most services are based. People have referred to the problems which have arisen as a result of that in locations not far from where we are standing.

The amendment points out all the advances that have been made. It is widely accepted, having regard to Towards 2016, that it is possible to tackle the vast majority of these problems by 2010 but there are no quick fixes. A comprehensive holistic approach must be taken to this issue. The Department, in conjunction with all the other agencies, is working extremely hard to address it. We will continue to provide the resources for it.

As we near Christmas, which is a time when we focus on our homes and families, we should realise this is a perennial issue. It is complex in many areas but much work has been done. I congratulate the Minister and the Department on what has been achieved so far.