Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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146. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the specific outcomes and deliverables achieved by a charity (details supplied) since it was asked to co-ordinate public pledges of support under the Irish refugee protection programme; and the funding which has been provided to date to the charity for this purpose. [19779/17]

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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In Autumn 2015, the Irish Red Cross, on foot of a Government decision, was tasked by the Department of Justice and Equality with managing voluntary pledges of accommodation, goods and services from the Irish Public in the effort to house migrants under the Irish Refugee Protection Programme (IRPP). A Register requesting public pledges went live onthe Irish Red Cross website (www.redcross.ie) in late September 2015 to collate offers of housing from the public.

As the Deputy is aware, due to operational difficulties in Italy and Greece, the relocation programme was slow to commence all over the EU and significant numbers of asylum seekers did not begin to arrive in Ireland until late 2016. Persons in the relocation programme must then have their application for asylum determined which takes around 12 weeks. It has therefore only been in the last number of months that the numbers of refugees emerging from the relocation programme and available for settlement in communities around Ireland has reached significant numbers. This number currently stands are 198 and is rapidly increasing. Most of these refugees will receive accommodation in communities around Ireland through the long established resettlement model run in cooperation with the local authority and funded by my Department. This model provides for a range of local supports including the appointment by the local authority of a resettlement worker/s. However, other refugees will also be offered pledged accommodation and services through the Irish Red Cross with the intention of assisting them to move more speedily out of Emergency Reception and Orientation Centres (EROCs) into local communities.

The first relocation group arrived in Ireland in January 2016. Over the last 12 months the Department of Justice and Equality has been working closely with the Irish Red Cross and during this time the Irish Red Cross has been engaged in a programme of planning and coordination, learning valuable lessons from previous resettlement projects, through engagement with institutions, community groups and Red Cross Movement Partners implementing similar projects in the EU.

TheIrish Red Crossas part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement has played an integral role providing a range of vital and lifesaving supports to millions of migrants along the migration trail from Syria, the Middle East and across Europe. The emblem of the Red Cross is a familiar and trusted sign of humanity and impartiality to many migrants entering Ireland. Almost without exception those who arrive in Ireland under the relocation programme will have encountered members of the Red Cross/Red Crescent movement on their journey to Ireland. The role of the Irish Red Cross in providing support at the point of entry in Ireland, supporting resettlement, family tracing, day to day supports at local levels is fundamental to the success of welcoming and creating a sustainable and stable living environment for those seeking refuge.

The Irish Red Cross received just over 700 pledges of accommodation across 27 counties in Ireland. Of this figure, the Irish Red Cross currently have 360 active shared accommodation offers, 120 active vacant stand-alone premises and 220 premises that are on hold, either not currently available or not meeting criteria.

The Irish Red Cross is researching formal processes to secure housing and are engaged in a rigorous housing assessments focusing on 120 vacant stand-alone pledges as part of Phase 1. Individual property inspections have assessed the suitability and appropriateness of these premises against a number of safety and situational criteria. Once a property is approved as suitable for housing, the Irish Red Cross are facilitating regulatory agreements with property owners and fitting out the properties to a minimum required standard.

The Irish Red Cross has been working closely with the IRPP and those who have received refugee status to understand the specific needs and requirements of families and individuals. With this in mind, placing refugees in any accommodation must take into account a range of personal and social requirements to support connectedness with Irish societal systems for both refugees and local communities and to respect the wishes and cultural aspirations of refugees. One of the significant challengers in terms of programme design is ensuring that the level of support available to those placed in pledged accommodation is broadly similar to that which pertains under the standard resettlement model. In addition, many offers of pledged accommodation are time limited which means that refugees will need to move from their pledged accommodation at some point and be placed in alternative accommodation within the community. This will require careful management to ensure that the ongoing needs of the refugees are met. Currently there are a number of families and individuals who have gained refugee status and of this number the Irish Red Cross are currently placing over 30 clients in pledged accommodation in May and have already placed three families in new homes. The Irish Red Cross are continuing the wrapping around of social supports linking with official Ireland and encouraging participation and engagement with local communities.

The Irish Red Cross has been working with the IRPP in the rigorous development of the ‘migration programme’ which has multidimensional outputs by managing the following activities:

- Providing in-kind supports to Syrian families at the air side point of entry working alongside the IRPP and the International Organisation for Migration. To date, the Irish Red Cross has provided supports to over 382 people arriving on flights into Ireland.

- Providing support to migrants to secure medium to long term accommodation in Ireland under the pledged system and/or private rental market.

- Facilitating and connecting refugees with necessary social supports and services in Ireland and at community level. (Education, Health, Social Welfare, Employment, English Language Support).

- Scaling up the Red Cross volunteer network at county level to support community integration activities; the Irish Red Cross is currently recruiting over 300 volunteers nationwide to support community level integration over the next 24 months and beyond.

- Developing and carrying out training on cultural awareness issues and psycho-social supports.

- Contributing as a member of Irish Refugee Protection Programme Task force - a cross-departmental and inter-agency Taskforce.

- Supporting Family Reunification Travel Assistance and Restoring Family Links for 315 cases in 2015 and 257 cases in 2016.

- Scaling up activities in preparation including holding informative regional meetings with its members, pledgers and local NGOs.

- IRC is also engaging in dialogue with local authorities and department of housing discussing the possibilities of utilising Housing Assistance Programme (HAP).

I also understand that the Irish Red Cross is developing a Customer Relationship Management Service which supports the ability to collate all data on pledges and casework in a central location, protecting personal data. The CRM system also supports accurate reporting enabling the service user, the Irish Red Cross and the IRPP to identify clear and concise outputs and indicators.

In 2015/2016 the Irish Red Cross received a total of €180,345 from my Department. This year the amount made available will increase in order to scale up the placement of clients in pledged accommodation together with supporting services. I anticipate that the amount made available for these purposes over the course of 2017 will be approximately €500,000. The purpose of the increased sum is to ensure the placement of larger numbers of refugees in pledged accommodation around the State in order to supplement the existing model of resettlement. It is my intention that this model will be reviewed over the coming twelve months to see how the lessons learned can be applied more broadly, both operationally and in terms of future policy development.

Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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147. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if, in view of the supports provided to programme refugees resettled here, any comparable model of support is offered to persons granted permission to remain here following relocation from Greece or Italy; and if so, the detail of those supports. [19780/17]

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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The Irish Refugee Protection Programme (IRPP) was established by Government Decision on 10 September 2015 as a direct response to the humanitarian crisis that developed in Southern Europe as a consequence of mass migration from areas of conflict in the Middle East and Africa. Under this programme, the Government has pledged to accept a total of 4,000 persons into the State by the end of 2017; 2,622 through the EU relocation mechanism established by two EU Council Decisions in 2015 to assist Italy and Greece, and 1,040 (519 by the end of 2016 and the remainder in 2017) under the UNHCR-led refugee resettlement programme currently focussed on resettling refugees from Lebanon.

As the Deputy is aware, the Irish Refugee Protection Programme (IRPP) covers two distinct cohorts - relocation cases from Greece and Italy and resettlement cases from Lebanon - the Deputy's question refers in particular to the former, those arriving from Greece and Italy as relocated asylum seekers.

The comprehensive reply to Parliamentary Question No. 96 of 21 February 2017 sets out in detail the nature of the integration programmes available to refugees arriving under the resettlement strand of the IRPP. In relation to the relocation strand of the IRPP, I can inform the Deputy that the integration programmes available to the relocated asylum seekers arriving here will be broadly the same as those for programme refugees, but there may be some small differences arising from the different nature and initial entitlements of this cohort.

As set out in the reply to Parliamentary Question No. 96 of 21 February 2017, work in relation to the arrival of UNHCR programme refugees begins about 9 months in advance of resettlement. With the relocation cohort this period of advance planning is not available because of the circumstances of the relocation group and the process set out in the relocation instruments. Instead the IRPP has about 3 months to plan for the arrival of relocated asylum seekers. When this cohort arrive they do not, as asylum seekers, possess the same rights and entitlements as refugees.

Nonetheless, the IRPP endeavours to the greatest extent possible to treat families and individuals arriving under the relocation programme in a broadly equivalent manner so as to commence the integration process in the quickest possible time scale. The IRPP does this as the likelihood of persons in this cohort achieving a grant of international protection is very high because (a) the selection process embedded in the relocation instruments is predicated on the fact that eligible nationalities must, across the EU, have a 75% or higher chance of obtaining status and (b) the overwhelming majority of persons being relocated to Ireland are fleeing the war in Syria.

In advance of their arrival in Ireland, relocated asylum seekers will have been interviewed while in Greece or Italy by an IRPP team to assess their needs and vulnerabilities prior to arrival in Ireland and to initially orient them to Irish life and society.

Following their arrival in Ireland, and during their initial period of reception, relocated asylum seekers will be accommodated in an Emergency Reception and Orientation Centre (EROC). As the name suggests, an EROC is largely about reception and orientation for those who are to be subsequently settled around the country. In the EROC they will receive broadly the same integration services as available to programme refugees with due account being taken of the fact that certain things may not be able to happen until individuals receive a decision on their application for a grant of international protection. This decision is usually forthcoming within twelve weeks. IRPP staff meet individuals and families at regular intervals to help assess their ongoing needs and requirements. The client group also receive an orientation and language training programme while in the EROC. A Friends of the Centre group has been established in Ballaghaderreen, the newest EROC to be opened and, working with the Irish Red Cross, the IRPP is liaising with volunteers to provide additional supports to facilitate residents as they start the long process of integrating into Irish society.

Some of the key features of supports provided to relocated asylum seekers include:

- IRPP staff and interpreters meet families and individuals upon arrival at Dublin Airport and accompany them to their Emergency Reception and Orientation Centre where they are accommodated for approximately six months.

- During the days post arrival the asylum seekers are registered with the Department of Social Protection for a public services card and receive an exceptional needs payment (ENP). - IRPP officials provide assistance to ensure that families and individuals receive a medical card.

- IRPP liaise with the local Education and Training Board in each catchment area to ensure that groups receive a Language Training and Cultural Orientation programme.

- Local Service Providers, volunteers and NGOs visit the Emergency Reception and Orientation Centres to provide services, to provide information and to support and befriend the refugees.

- A GP is assigned to the relocated asylum seekers to ensure that their immediate medical needs are met including referral to dental and optical services.

- Childcare is provided free of charge to allow the adults to attend the Language and Orientation programme in their EROC.

- Education provision is made for school age children by the Department of Education and Skills.

- Emergency medical matters are followed up while resident in the EROCs.

- Once the asylum seekers receive refugee status and when housing is available, the refugees will be resettled in the community with the support of the IRPP and volunteers in the local community. Each family will be assigned a resettlement worker to assist with the transition.

In terms of settlement in the community, the overall model to be used will be identical to the model used for programme refugees as will be the suite of integration supports.

In relation to integration, the Deputy may also be aware that the Migrant Integration Strategy, which was published on 7 February 2017, offers a blueprint for the Government's action to promote migrant integration for the period to 2020. It sees integration as a two-way process which involves action by migrants and non-migrants alike. It promotes action by Government, business, employers, migrants, NGOs and local communities. The Strategy requires all Departments to insert integration as a theme in strategy statements, business plans and staff training. It is using networks as a means of encouraging greater participation by migrants in all aspects of Irish life. It includes targeted initiatives to promote migrant entrepreneurship, to encourage migrants into the Civil Service and onto State boards and to improve English language provision in education and training. It is accompanied by a Communities Integration Fund which I launched on 7 February, which will provide funding for community initiatives to promote integration.

The IRPP integration model for relocated asylum seekers will work with existing best practice in this areas as pioneered by the OPMI but is also willing to work organically with community bodies, NGOs and civil society to see what else can be added to the integration model in order to help refugees successfully integrate into Irish society and rebuild their lives. It is my firm intention that the model of integration and support is one which will evolve and develop over the coming twelve months.