Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Earlier today, I finished reading the report of the Charities Regulator on the Peter McVerry Trust. The report contains details of serious breaches of governance, which will be discussed by a different forum at a later stage. Like many others, I have been canvassing in recent weeks. Approved housing bodies provide services to people coming out of homelessness or to those with addiction issues in areas of the city where there are developments, particularly apartment blocks. In many instances, there are inappropriate or a complete absence of supports for these high-need, vulnerable people.

The use of both restricted and unrestricted funds for the provision of day-to-day services lies at the heart of the regulator's report. I wonder whether approved housing bodies are tendering against each other to provide these services. In any event, I am seeking a debate with the Minister for housing, Deputy O’Brien, on this matter and on the appropriateness of the tendering process and the requirements within it that allow for people with high needs to be put in apartments without adequate support services being provided. Not only is this terrible for the people who need highly supported living arrangements, it is also terribly to the detriment of the other people living in the complexes to which I refer, many of whom find themselves living underneath apartments in which taps have been left running or fires have been started. These people live in a constant state of nervousness. Approved housing bodies are getting money from the State for the provision of the services that are causing those who live in the vicinity of the people in receipt of them to have absolute nightmares.

We need the Minister to come before the House. We need a debate on the appropriateness of what I have outlined. I must reflect the need of the people in the Dublin South-Central constituency to see that someone is held accountable for those living among them who are in receipt of the supports to which I refer. There must also be accountability when it comes to the appropriateness of renting apartments in these developments to people who clearly need supported and sheltered housing.