John Lyons (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 168: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if any asylum seekers have committed suicide in direct provision centres over the past ten years; if so, if he will provide a breakdown of the numbers by year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13763/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The Reception and Integration Agency (RIA), a functional unit of the Immigration Division of the Department of Justice and Law Reform, was established in 2001 with specific responsibility for the provision of direct provision accommodation to asylum seekers. Since April 2000 to date, RIA (and its predecessor, DASS - Directorate of Asylum Seeker Services) has provided accommodation for over 49,781 asylum seekers. The collation of statistics on deaths of all asylum seekers living in direct provision commenced only in 2002. During the period 2002 to date, the number of asylum seekers who died, while being provided with accommodation by RIA in direct provision centres, is set out as follows.

I am informed that statistics as to cause of death are not centrally compiled and are not therefore readily available. Determinations as to the circumstances of all deaths are primarily a matter for the coroners and the RIA has no function in this area. Furthermore, I am also informed that in most of the above cases, the deaths occurred outside of accommodation centres in hospitals and other locations where the RIA has no standing.