Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to be back in the Upper House to report on a range of amendments made by the Dáil to the Bill. The Bill was first discussed in this House on 1 October 2008 and completed all Stages on 10 December last. Since then, as Senators will be aware, it has been debated in the Dáil, amended and, I believe, improved significantly. The list before the House today contains 157 amendments which have been made to the Bill as passed by Seanad Éireann. In view of that significant number, Senators will appreciate it would not be practical to discuss each amendment individually. In my report to the House, I will therefore deal with the amendments under a number of broad groupings. Of course, if any Senator would like to be briefed on a particular amendment, I will be happy to do so.

There are a number of groupings. With regard to the homelessness action plans, group 1 relates to amendments Nos. 1, 10, 15, 17, 22, 23, 47 to 53, inclusive, and 147 to 152, inclusive.

The issue of homelessness and the placing of homelessness action plans on a statutory basis was the subject of considerable debate during the Bill's passage through the Seanad. I am pleased to be reporting back to the House today with these amendments. As Senators are aware, The Way Home: A Strategy to Address Adult Homelessness in Ireland, which I published in August 2008, set out the key objectives of our homelessness policy, which are to eliminate long-term occupation of emergency accommodation and the need to sleep rough. The strategy also contains a commitment to put homelessness action plans on a statutory basis and the amendments made to the Bill in the Dáil, and first signalled in this House during the Second Stage and Committee Stage debate, deliver on that undertaking.

Amendments Nos. 47 to 53, inclusive, contain the substantive provision and insert a new Chapter 6 with seven sections in Part 2 of the Bill, which deals with the functions of local authorities. The provisions establish a structural process involving homelessness consultative forums, management groups and the making of and adoption of homelessness action plans by elected councils. The plans will specify the actions to be undertaken by various stakeholders to meet broad objectives, including the prevention and reduction of homelessness and the promotion of an effective co-ordination between the various bodies involved in the provision of homeless services. The consultative forum will bring together the key players in the provision of homeless services, statutory and non-statutory. Its function mirrors at a local level the cross-departmental team and the National Homeless Consultative Committee which provide the platform for consultation nationally. It will play a key role in the homeless action plan structure as a forum for discussion and debate on homelessness and it will provide input for the preparation of a homeless action plan and views and reports on the subsequent operation of the plan. The management group will complement the work of the consultative forum but with a separate function, including a remit to make recommendations to housing authorities, the HSE and other relevant bodies in respect of homeless services, the preparation of the homeless action plan and recommendations regarding funding for homeless services.