Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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304. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality to commit to a balanced approach to national refugee support that considers the unique economic needs of towns such as Youghal, County Cork. [36895/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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Since 2022, against the backdrop of war in Ukraine, increased applications for international protection, and the acute shortages of accommodation, it has not been possible for the State to apply specific policies in relation to distribution of accommodation centres, including a geographic or county-by-county based dispersal plan.

In relation to the State's Ukraine response, the level of need for accommodation among people fleeing this war has now reduced and is expected to continue to do so. Properties are being returned to their former use, for example in tourism, hospitality and education, and to private use.

In 2024, over 12,000 beds were returned from use by my Department's Ukraine response to tourism, among a total of 15,000 beds returned to private use in the period.

As a result, the Department is no longer seeking to add new accommodation centres to the portfolio of State-supported Ukraine accommodation.

This should allow growth of the tourism sector in the areas concerned, with an acknowledgment of the contribution made by these areas and providers to support the historic humanitarian and State response to people fleeing the war in Ukraine.

In relation to the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS), the number of people applying for international protection has increased significantly in this same period. IPAS was accommodating approximately 7,000 people at the end of 2021, and at the end of 2024, the resident total had grown to over 32,000 people.

As we respond to changing trends, and work toward a more stable and sustainable accommodation system in this sector, accommodation is being developed and delivered through a range of channels, with a focus on developing more State-owned accommodation.

Ireland has adopted and is now working to implement the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum in mid-2026. Reforming and speeding up processing of applications should also serve over time to reduce the scale of the demand for international protection accommodation.

The Department is also working to increase the amount of State-owned international protection accommodation, and creating a more stable and sustainable accommodation system.

It is hoped that the creation of a core supply of State-owned accommodation, of both emergency and permanent options, will also allow more strategic direction over accommodation types, location and dispersal patterns nationwide.