Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach and Senators for providing me with the opportunity to speak on this important issue. Homelessness is a destructive social condition that can wreak havoc on human dignity and well-being. It is a complex phenomenon and solutions are about much more than simply funding and accommodation. The problems that contribute to homelessness can relate to both personal circumstances and wider social issues. Therefore, addressing homelessness requires an integrated approach across Government and across society.

Everyone here is all too aware of the tragedy which occurred earlier in the week very close to this House. Senators will join me in expressing our sincere condolences to the family, relatives and friends of the deceased, Jonathan Corrie. To die in a doorway on a winter's night is an appalling tragedy that should not happen. That Mr. Corrie's death occurred just metres from these buildings gives us all cause for reflection on this highly complex issue. I appreciate all the sincere commentary we have had in both the Dáil and Seanad in recent days as to how we can address this at Government level and by engaging more broadly with society. There are no simple, one-off solutions and every person who finds himself or herself in the unfortunate and vulnerable situation of being homeless will face a different set of circumstances.

It is very important, especially in the run-up to Christmas, for this House to discuss issues of homelessness generally, recognise what is being done to address it, debate where more could be done and identify how we can better collaborate. It is important to acknowledge that much is being done across Government and its agencies to deal with this issue. Homelessness has always been and will remain a priority for me. It is an issue about which I have quite a lot of knowledge, for many different reasons, and a topic that is close to my heart. I am acutely aware of the challenges posed by homelessness and, since becoming Minister, I have given the highest possible priority, working with my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Paudie Coffey, to taking urgent action to tackle it. I will now outline to Senators some of the main measures already in place or about to come on stream.

First, I have made significant funding available to housing authorities for refurbishing vacant units. This is a priority because it can provide much-needed homes for homeless households in a relatively short period of time. There are 655 units in Dublin city that, with refurbishment, can be returned to productive use. Work has started on 245 of these, and a further 410 should be completed over the next four months. Although I represent Tipperary, I know this city very well, having lived and worked here for nine years. When I became Minister, I could not fathom why "voids", as we call them - that is, social housing units that are boarded up and currently unavailable for housing - were being left vacant for such lengthy periods. This was deeply frustrating. Dublin City Council has risen to the challenge of ensuring as many of these units as possible are turned around and made available to people very quickly.

Second, I have written to all housing authorities urging them to give priority to homeless households in their housing allocations schemes. Data on the actual 2014 allocations will be analysed in the new year and, if progress is not satisfactory, I will be issuing a direction that a significant proportion of housing allocations go to homeless households. I have made my position clear in this regard to all local authorities. If a substantial increase in allocations to homeless people is not achieved, I will issue a direction that it be done. My objective is that 25% of allocations should go to homeless people, particularly those in long-term homelessness. Housing authorities have the power and authority to manage allocations and it is vital that they use those powers if an end to involuntary long-term homelessness is to be achieved.

Third, I will be signing regulations shortly to provide for the housing assistance payment scheme to be rolled out in the Dublin region on a pilot basis for homeless households. Fourth, I am making an additional €10.5 million in funding available nationally in 2015 for homeless accommodation and related services, an increase of more than 20%. In addition, in recognition of the immediate pressures in the Dublin area, I provided a €4 million supplementary allocation to Dublin City Council in recent days. This was done in a context where the council had voted down an increase in its budget for homeless services.

However, it is important to be aware that solving this problem is not all down to funding. I will go to Cabinet and fight for more funding if that is needed, but it is not all that is required. It is also about processes and ensuring everybody is working together.

I hope Members will agree that the ultimate solution to ending homelessness long-term is to increase the supply of homes. A dramatic increase in the supply of homes in the medium term is necessary. Last week I launched the Government's new six year social housing strategy which sets out to provide 35,000 new social housing units at a cost of €3.8 billion. The strategy restores the State to a central position in the provision of social housing through a resumption of direct building on a significant scale by local authorities and approved housing bodies, AHBs. This will be supplemented with the housing assistance payment and rental accommodation schemes, which aim to meet the housing needs of more than 70,000 households.

As I already noted, homelessness is a complex issue and rough sleeping is its most disturbing manifestation. Some 168 individuals were identified in the count of rough sleepers in Dublin, conducted on the night of 11 November last. Worryingly, this is an increase of 20% on the figure of 139 individuals recorded during November 2013, and highlights the scale of the issue.

While the factors leading to rough sleeping are complex, this does not take away from the fact that it is not acceptable that people should not sleep on the streets of our major urban centres. In response to the issue of rough sleeping, the Dublin housing authorities have established a new Housing First service which has been operational since 1 October 2014. This service is being provided through Focus Ireland and the Peter McVerry Trust and has responsibility for engaging and responding to the accommodation and support needs of people sleeping rough in the Dublin region. It is expected that this Housing First service will secure a minimum of 140 tenancies for long-term homeless individuals over a three year period.

Arrangements are also under way since the November rough sleeper count took place to increase the emergency bed capacity in Dublin. The number of emergency accommodation beds available in the Dublin region, including hotel beds, was 1,526. The Dublin housing authorities have indicated that an additional 164 emergency beds are now being added to the system; some of these are already operational and all but 20 of the 164 additional beds will be in place within the next two weeks. The remainder will come on-stream in the first week in January.

Other work that is under way is the continuation of the prevention campaign, run by Threshold in conjunction with Dublin City Council and the Department of Social Protection. The new service has played an important part in assisting in raising awareness among families and others of their tenants' rights and where to go for support. More than 2,350 calls have been made to the service to date and it is playing a really important part in helping to stem the flow of families becoming homeless. The tenancy sustainment protocol between Dublin City Council, the Department of Social Protection, the other Dublin housing authorities and Threshold as part of that prevention campaign has supported in excess 200 households to remain in rented accommodation which was under threat due to inability to pay increased rents.

All of these actions are part of the Government's wider implementation plan on the State's response to homelessness. Given the homelessness pressures in the capital, Dublin City Council also has an action plan in place as part of this wider national plan. I can assure the House that the Government is fully committed to tackling the issue of homelessness. In February 2013, we published our homelessness policy statement in which we outlined our aim to end involuntary long-term homelessness by the end of 2016. The implementation plan outlines how the 2016 objectives can be achieved. The plan contains in excess of 80 actions. It will be no small undertaking to achieve this target but it is something that has to be achieved and it will be achieved. I am committed to doing everything I can to ensure that we deliver.

However, we will achieve much more for homeless people by working on a collaborative basis. That is what the summit tomorrow is all about. My priority for tomorrow is to bring everyone together to discuss this very serious issue to see how we can work better together collectively. The requirements of the State and the support of the Government will be made available. I have outlined some of the various actions we have taken, all of which are moving in the right direction. We need to ensure that working together as a Government with the local authorities, the various NGOs, the State agencies, the HSE and other agencies that we can have processes in place that ensure people are not falling between the cracks. There is no best practice way of dealing with this issue. I am sure everybody agrees with that.

All individual cases are different. We need to ensure we provide the supports and not just the accommodation. If it was a case of just providing the accommodation I am sure we could do that but we also need to provide the accommodation with the services and supports for the people who find themselves in this situation. Everyone's situation is different, whether it is a family in a vulnerable financial situation or a person with complex issues with drug addiction, mental health issues or whatever. We need to ensure that everybody is working together to ensure the needs of all these people are met. The aim is to see if we can solidify on that and if we can plug any gaps. There may be some new ideas. I have often said nobody has a monopoly on ideas or ways of doing things.

I am going into this summit with an open mind. I intend to implement the strategy we have already designed but I also want people to work with me. I want to ensure that all the accommodation services provided by the NGOs are achieving what was intended. I want to see accommodation that is available for people, which is currently not in use, being opened up. It is not something over which I have full control but it is time we tackled the issue as to why accommodation provided by some organisations is not yet open and how we can help them to do that. We need to get through that issue. There is a whole range of other issues involved.

I was very taken by the statement of Archbishop Diarmuid Martin and others who will attend the summit tomorrow, on the manner in which they will help to address this issue. Everyone has a role. I will take all advice and help in the right spirit. This important issue is above the normal political debate. It is an issue of society and one that collectively we all want dealt with in the best way possible.