Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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153. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the number of adults and children in emergency accommodation funded by his Department on the first day of every month in 2016. [3442/17]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme is considered the "safety net" within the overall social welfare system in that it provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependants. The main purpose of the scheme is to provide immediate and flexible assistance for those in need who do not qualify for payment under other State schemes.

Under SWA, my Department can make a single exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off expenditure, which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. The Government has provided €31.5 million for the exceptional and urgent needs schemes in 2017.

Under the ENP scheme payments can be made to support temporary accommodation where required. Statistics are not maintained on the numbers of adults and children supported with accommodation costs through the ENP scheme. There are many reasons why a person might seek support with temporary accommodation costs, for example when travelling with a family member to access medical treatment in another location.

The overall responsibility for the response to homelessness rests with the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government and the local authorities. There are some historical arrangements in place in some areas of the country, for example in Cork City, where Community Welfare Service staff co-ordinate access to homeless accommodation on behalf of the local authority. These cases are recorded on the PASS system.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.