Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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1201. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the way in which he plans to safeguard crucial programmes like Housing First while several of such organisations are in crisis (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19220/25]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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The Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at the local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual housing authorities. A homelessness consultative forum has been established in each of the nine homeless regions in accordance with Chapter 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2009. Decisions on the range of homeless services including emergency accommodation in each region are a matter for individual housing authorities in consultation with the Management Group of the relevant regional joint Homelessness Consultative Forum.

An allocation of €303m, an increase of €61m on the 2024 provision, has been made under Budget 2025 to provide homeless prevention services, including Housing First, emergency accommodation and other services for households experiencing homelessness.

In addition, capital funding of €25m has been made available to the Department and will support the delivery of high quality transitional and emergency accommodation for individuals experiencing homelessness.

The Housing First approach to addressing homelessness places direct access to housing first and foremost for vulnerable individuals using homeless services consistently or intermittently over long periods of time, and those unable or resistant to accessing homeless services and who may then become habitual rough sleepers. These individuals often have complex high support needs such as mental or physical health problems, addiction issues or dual diagnosis (the presence of mental ill health and a substance addiction).

Housing for All committed to the further expansion of Housing First. A new National Implementation Plan, which provides for a further 1,319 tenancies covering the period 2022-2026, was published in December 2021. These targets are based on an analysis of need, which involved all key stakeholders and was supported by The Housing Agency. The implementation of the Plan is a joint initiative of my Department, the Department of Health, the Health Service Executive (HSE), the criminal justice sector (the Probation Service and the Irish Prison Service) and Local Authorities, in conjunction with NGO partners. Each partner is committing the necessary resources and supports to implement the programme.

The Programme for Government, Securing Ireland’s Future, commits to creating 2,000 Housing First tenancies to help eliminate long term homelessness.