Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We need to move people on to more permanent accommodation and not leave people in tents. We need to understand the scale of this and we do not know where we are going. In six months' time, how many will we be dealing with? A colossal number of refugees will be seeking our help.

I commend those who have pledged their own accommodation. I believe we have received about 25,000 pledges of accommodation, including spare rooms as well as entire apartments or houses. People are accommodating families in their homes. That level of generosity is overwhelming and profound. It is incredible for people to welcome somebody into their home for 12, 18 or 24 months or perhaps even longer. It is incredible to see that number of people offering space in their homes to people in need and they should be commended on it. It will go a long way towards helping the Government to deal with the housing situation for those refugees coming in.

The task ahead of us, as a people, a country and a government, is enormous. It is really important that we, as public representatives of all parties and none, stick together and work together. We need to refrain from populism and from commentary that would somehow suggests this is an easy thing to deal with. It is not easy and it will not be easy. It will push our country. We will do the right thing because we would expect the same in return if it happened to us. It is about looking at this in a humanitarian way and looking after the immediate needs of those fleeing a warzone; that is essentially what is happening.

I offer céad míle fáilte to all those Ukrainians coming to our country, predominantly women and children. They are welcome here and we will do our best to look after them and provide them with everything they need in terms of getting their children into school, proper housing, health supports and everything else that goes with that. Our country will be a better for having these lovely people come to live here with us. For however long that may be, we will manage this.