Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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628. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the guidance he intends to issue to local authorities for the forthcoming mid-term review of the Traveller Accommodation Programme; if he plans to request the local authorities to consider the content and recommendations of the Irish Equality and Human Rights Commissions Equality review of the Traveller Accommodation Programmes in the context of the guidance he intends to issue to local authorities for the forthcoming mid-term review of the programmes; and if he will include specific reference in councils mid-term reviews to the issues highlighted by the Commission. [19649/22]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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The Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998 provides that housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas. My Department’s role is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to assist the authorities in providing such accommodation, including a national framework of policy, legislation and funding.

I understand that the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission engaged directly with each local authority in connection with the equality reviews it undertook in 2019. I expect that local authorities will have full regard to the relevant work of all key stakeholders as part of the mid-term review of the TAPs including that of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. My Department will be communicating with local authorities on the mid-term review of the TAPs shortly.