Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Question 226: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform the number of persons who have to date moved from the Mosney Centre, County Meath, to alternative accommodation as sought at the end of July last by the Reception and Integration Agency attached his Department; the locations to which their residence has been moved; the numbers and circumstances of those who remain in Mosney who were originally informed that they were obliged to move; and in respect of each individual who has moved if he will detail the comparative costs to the State of their remaining in Mosney monthly as compared to their residence in an alternative location. [34211/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Reception and Integration Agency (RIA) of my Department is responsible for the accommodation of asylum seekers in accordance with the Government policy of direct provision and dispersal. In managing its portfolio of accommodation, the RIA must ensure value for money in balancing the demand for, and supply of, asylum seeker accommodation. Adjustments to the portfolio are made with the procurement of accommodation or the non-renewal or downsizing of contracts depending on demand.

The contract for the accommodation at Mosney was renewed in June, 2010 with a capacity reduction from 800 to 650 bed spaces. This reduction has been achieved in line with the accommodation needs of the RIA and in accordance with the efficiency targets recommended in the recently published Value Form Money report on asylum seeker accommodation. In order to achieve reductions in the number of residents at Mosney, arrangements were made for 109 single adult asylum seekers to be re-accommodated at Hatch Hall accommodation centre in Dublin 2 and other locations where suitable accommodation and associated services for this group exist.

To date, of the 109 persons scheduled to transfer, 41 have transferred to Hatch Hall, 36 have left direct provision or moved to other centres for which they expressed a preference and 6 persons have been allowed to remain at Mosney. A further 26 persons, scheduled to transfer, remain at Mosney and the RIA is processing these cases with a view to finalising their future accommodation location.

The types and profile of accommodation centres under contract to RIA vary in terms of the services supplied, duration, location and cost. The average cost per person per month for direct provision accommodation across all tenures is €770.28. The reduction in the Mosney contract occupancy rate is expected to realise savings of in the order of €1.2m in 2010 alone and with ongoing savings in 2011. Added to this, the RIA has achieved higher occupancy and more efficient usage of its portfolio with downsizing such as at Mosney and closures of other accommodation centres, thus effecting further savings in real terms. The Value for Money report on asylum seeker accommodation recommended that occupancy levels at RIA accommodation should be in excess of 90% and this has been achieved.