Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

842. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality when a contract (details supplied) will terminate; if his department plans to renew the contract; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63999/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The Department has had a contract in place with a provider to provide international protection accommodation at this location since early 2024. It is functioning as a dispersal centre for the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS), with families in residence for a short period of time before transfer to an alternative centre. The end date of the current contract is during the first quarter of 2026.

The Department conducts all contractual negotiations on the basis of there being no guarantee of the continuity of a contract beyond its end date.

With respect to potential for contract renewals, the provision of accommodation for international protection applicants is demand-led, and each premises is considered on a case-by-case basis to decide if the contract will be renewed as it approaches its end date.

At potential renewal stage, consideration will be given to the current and projected demand for accommodation, the provider's performance under contract, and compliance with standards and legal obligations.

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

As developing these more sustainable state-owned accommodation system options under this strategy will take time, the commissioning of emergency commercial accommodation will continue to be a feature in the short to medium term.