Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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162. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of housing first tenancies created in each of the years 2016 to 2019 and to date in 2020; and the breakdown for each local authority for each of the years and to date in 2020. [29873/20]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Housing First enables homeless individuals with high levels of complex needs to obtain permanent secure accommodation with the provision of intensive housing and health supports to help them maintain their tenancies.

The National Implementation Plan for Housing First, published in September 2018, which puts the programme on a national footing, is designed to provide this response, by delivering permanent housing solutions and associated supports for rough sleepers and long-term users of emergency accommodation. It extends the delivery of Housing First nationally, with the introduction of targets for each local authority. The Plan includes an overall target of 663 tenancies in the period 2018-2021. The implementation of the Plan is a joint initiative of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Department of Health, the HSE and the local authorities.

In line with the National Implementation Plan, Housing First is being delivered on a regional basis by the local authorities and the HSE. Contracts for the delivery of services have been put in place in each of the nine regions responsible for the delivery of homeless services with tenancies now in place in every region. The Housing First programme has been operating in the Dublin region since 2014, following a successful pilot.

The Programme for Government commits to an expansion of the Housing First targets. Research is being undertaken to carry out an assessment of need for the supports provided by Housing First.

The following table provides an details on the number of tenancies created since 2016.