Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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129. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the approximate cost of ending the current system of direct provision and replacing it with accommodation in the community; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36381/14]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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The Reception and Integration Agency (RIA) of my Department is responsible for the accommodation of protection applicants in accordance with the Government policy of direct provision and dispersal. Direct provision provides for full board accommodation supports while a final decision is awaited by a person on their protection or any related leave to remain application. Currently, 4,330 persons are residing in 34 asylum accommodation centres under contract to RIA. Direct Provision owes its origin as the public policy response to a major accommodation crisis that existed in the late 1990s / early 2000s. At its high point in 2005 the number of persons residing in Direct Provision was 8080.

A key finding in the 2010 Value for Money Report on the Direct Provision system was that if we were operating a system which provided for asylum seekers to live independent lives in individual housing with associated social welfare payments, aside from the asylum 'pull factor' towards the State it would clearly create, the cost to the exchequer could be possibly double what is currently paid under the direct provision system. The report is available in full on the agency's website on www.ria.gov.ie.

In terms of the cost of replacing the Direct Provision system with private rented accommodation, it is difficult to calculate what that cost would be. The number of persons seeking asylum this year is currently running at 40% higher than last. This, invariably, creates additional pressures and challenges for the State. Asylum seekers are not obliged to avail of direct provision supports and a significant number choose to make their own arrangements in the absence of an alternative. Should a system be introduced whereby such persons could effectively avail of mainstream social welfare supports, including rent supplement in line with those available to Irish citizens, it would be logical to expect that the numbers seeking such State supports could increase significantly with costs rising accordingly. It would also be logical to expect an increase in the number of economic migrants seeking to enter the State via the asylum system. Therefore, any change to the current Direct Provision system must be given careful consideration.

The Government is committed to making real improvements to the protection process, including direct provision. We have made a number of commitments to this end in the Statement of Government Priorities 2014 – 2016. This includes a commitment to establish an independent Working Group to report to Government on improvements to the protection process, including Direct Provision and supports for asylum seekers.

My intention is to proceed with the establishment of that Working Group in the near future. Together with Minister of State O’Ríordaín, I hosted a Round Table on 18 September to provide non-governmental organisations active in the field of asylum the opportunity to outline the key issues for them in relation to the State's current arrangements for asylum seekers. That initiative was widely welcomed by the NGOs involved and proved very useful for the purpose of identifying the issues which will need to be addressed. I will be using the outcome of that meeting to inform the terms of reference of the Working Group which I expect to establish shortly.