Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I apologise on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Roderic O'Gorman, who cannot be here. This response has been drafted by departmental officials and perhaps we can get further into the more human side of what the Senator has raised afterwards.

There are currently 37 residents in the Courtown emergency accommodation centre, with five residents leaving the centre on Tuesday, 8 June, to move to dedicated accommodation, as the Senator alluded to. These accommodation centres are at various locations around the country and a further ten residents moved on Friday, 11 June. It is expected the remaining 37 residents will move to new accommodation before the end of July.

The transfer of residents from the Courtown emergency accommodation centre is part of the normal policy to move people out of emergency accommodation and into more permanent accommodation centres subject to the national standards for accommodation offered to people in the international protection process and to regular inspections as soon as possible.

In arranging the moves, the international protection accommodation service, or IPAS, of the Department has sought to take account of families' individual needs. For example, families with children sitting State exams will not be moved until after the exams have been completed. I hope that brings clarity for the families mentioned by the Senator. All of the families that are moving will be accommodated in centres that provide for independent living where they can choose and prepare their own meals. Some are moving to own-door accommodation and all families and single people will be accommodated in centres with staff who are trained to assist their residents to find the supports they need in their locality.

All dedicated accommodation centres also have a "friends of the centre" group, comprising residents, staff and local volunteers to assist with the integration of residents into the community and to promote relationships with local groups, such as Tidy Towns committees, sports clubs, Men's Sheds and mother and baby clubs.

IPAS officials visited Courtown on 12 March and subsequently held an online clinic with residents on 25 March. They also attended the centre on Tuesday and Friday last to assist residents with their move. IPAS has engaged fully with local services, including Tusla, Wexford Local Development and an NGO, Places of Sanctuary, in dealing with the centre and its residents. It is great that we are talking to all these organisations but the most important group to speak with are the families. Listening to the Senator's contribution, it seems that was missing. The officials will continue to assist families to settle into their new accommodation and ensure they are linked with all of the services they need in their new locations, such as school places and access to health services.

The Minister, Deputy Roderic O'Gorman, met residents of a number of centres, including several residents of the Courtown emergency centre, at an online meeting with Places of Sanctuary on Thursday, 10 June. That meeting involved a wide-ranging discussion about all aspects of direct provision and the international protection process with people who are at different stages. This included people living in direct provision whose applications have still to be determined; people who have been granted international protection and have moved out of direct provision accommodation; and people who have been granted status but are still living in direct provision accommodation.

Places of Sanctuary subsequently wrote to the Minister to relay some further concerns regarding the process by which residents at Courtown have been informed of intended moves to other accommodation centres. The Minister will be following up on these matters with IPAS officials directly. He will also be following up with his colleague, the Minister for Justice, on a number of other matters raised at the meeting, including case processing times at the international protection office and the International Protection Appeals Tribunal and the processing of applications for family reunification.

As Senators are aware, the White Paper to end direct provision, which was published by the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, at the end of February, includes a commitment to put in place a systematic programme to move away from reliance on emergency accommodation as quickly as possible. This is a key element of the White Paper work schedule for 2021. A decision will require a visit by the Department's officials to Courtown and a critical look at accommodation capacity across the network and at how best to achieve the goal of moving away from reliance on emergency accommodation as soon as possible. Officials of the Department have communicated regularly with the owner and manager of the centre and will continue to do so.