Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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625. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he has requested local authorities to develop their own migrant integration strategies as envisaged by the national migrant integration strategy published by the Department of Justice and Equality earlier in 2017. [41802/17]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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626. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if additional funding under a programme his Department oversees has been provided to local authorities and local community groups in areas in which refugees have been resettled under the refugee protection programme; and if so, the amount of funding allocated by local authority and community group. [41803/17]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 625 and 626 together.

Under the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, an operational sub-group under the auspices of the Irish Refugee Protection Programme (IRPP) Taskforce, composed of all relevant Departments of State and other bodies such as representatives of local authorities and the Irish Red Cross, was established to support the process of housing the families referred to by the Deputy. This sub-group is co-chaired by my Department and the Department of Justice and Equality. 

Arrangements are being put in place at local authority level across the country to support the housing of these refugees, including through the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) Scheme. Such housing solutions are being funded from the €5.35billion approved by Government under Rebuilding Ireland. It should be noted that a range of other supports are also being made available at local level to support the integration of the families concerned into their new communities. My Department does not have a funding programme for local community groups in areas in which refugees have been resettled.