Maire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I raised the matter this morning. To add to it, Senator Hopkins needs to push for the implementation group not to include those who have already been found to be ineffective in Roscommon-Galway.

I want to start with the Dubliner, Fr. Joe Mallin, son of Michael Mallin and the last surviving child of the 1916 Rising leaders. He is 104 and we celebrated his birthday in Dublin 8 last week. I would like the Seanad to send Fr. Joe Mallin a birthday card to wish him well, and to congratulate the double Dublin winning all-Ireland teams.

I wish to raise the issue of Dublin Simon Community's report on homelessness and health. It is, I suppose, the leading charity for health and homelessness in our city. The report was launched today by our Ard Mhéara, Mícheál Mac Donncha. Unfortunately, analysis has shown that the health funding for homelessness has dropped by 10% since 2008. In 2008, the health spend was over €36 million with 1,388 homeless adults using emergency accommodation. We thought we were bad then but we now have almost 6,000 people using such accommodation, half of whom are children. Children are being born into homelessness. The cost of homeless is growing. The current health spend in the area is €32 million. Homelessness has jumped by 170% since 2004 and yet the health budget is way below what it should be.

We know of the detrimental impact of homelessness such as the anxiety and the physical impact of losing one's home, one's community, the school for one's children and going into precarious bed and breakfast accommodation or situations.Research has told us that but we do not need research to tell us. I would like the Leader to ask the Ministers, both Deputy Eoghan Murphy and Deputy Simon Harris to discuss this and resolve it and to try to get an adequate health budget for these areas. The budget is way below what it should be considering that homelessness in this city has increased by 170%.