Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I join Senator Boyhan in recognising World Refugee Day. It is important to continue to highlight the atrocities occurring around the world but also to give support to the many agencies helping those in refugee camps. I visited a refugee camp on the Sudanese border some years ago and they are difficult to manage. There were more than 570,000 people from four countries living in the camp I visited. Protection and food must be provided. At times it is difficult to get food into those areas. I was there in March and the camp needed to bring in 58,000 tonnes of food by June, otherwise it would not have been able to get it in during the rainy season. The nearest port was 2,500 km away. That is the challenge in dealing with refugees and we need to be conscious of that. While the economy here is doing well, it is important that we do not forget that there are major challenges in other jurisdictions, which we need to support.

One of the big problems for those on the housing waiting list is that with the economic upturn, people are receiving increased salaries and, as a result, are above the earning limit to remain on the list. The qualifying criterion to be on the waiting list is €39,325 in joint income. I was contacted by a family last week, comprising a couple with three children, who are now earning €39,900 and have been advised that they no longer qualify to be on the housing waiting list. That is a serious issue. People should not be penalised because there is an upturn in the economy. There is no way on earth that a couple earning €40,000 can secure and pay a mortgage on a house.