John Paul O'Shea (Cork North-West, Fine Gael)
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96. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the supports available to communities in Cork that are accommodating newly arrived international protection applicants; the number of centres in place in 2025 compared to 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67261/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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The State is currently accommodating almost 33,000 people who have applied for international protection in Ireland, about 9,500 of whom are children.

During a significant surge in applications from 2022 to 2024, the State was obliged to urgently source over 26,000 beds to accommodation people in the IPAS system. While the State was not in a position to implement policies in relation to dispersal or distribution, the nearly 320 IPAS accommodation centres currently in operation are distributed and operational in every county across Ireland.

Currently, there are 22 IPAS accommodation Centres in Co. Cork. In November 2024, there were 23 IPAS Accommodation Centres in Co. Cork. Cork hosts a total of 1483 international protection applicants, about a quarter of whom are children.

When new residents arrive to a centre, IPAS have a range of supports in place to help them to settle into their accommodation, including Resident Welfare Team supports, the centre staff and management themselves, and the wider Customer Service team within IPAS. Advocacy organisation also connect with new residents to assist them.

The Department provides funding for dedicated integration teams within each Local Authority, and a range of funding schemes for communities, to support integration of people who newly arrive to an area.

The Local Authority Integration Teams in both Cork City Council and Cork County Council are funded directly by my Department and provide a range of supports to both new and longer-term residents, connecting them with the wider community as a whole.

Another important mechanism used to support integration is through local and national funding programmes, aimed at non-government and community groups, to enable them to play their part and progress programmes to support integration initiatives in their locality or in their area of expertise.

The Ireland Against Racism Fund is part of the (www.gov.ie/en/department-of-children-disability-and-equality/publications/national-action-plan-against-racism/) and enables non-government and community organisations to provide projects and local initiatives that combat racism and promote racial equality. To date, 57 projects have received funding amounting to €2.4 million under the scheme, and results of the 2025 Ireland Against Racism Fund are to be announced by Minister Colm Brophy this week.

The Integration Fund 2025 supports local community groups, charities and other organisations to carry out integration projects at a national, regional or local level. Results of the 2025 Integration Fund were announced on 12 November 2025. 117 projects were awarded grants with a combined total of €3.6m.

The National Integration Fund (NIF) is a multi-annual funding call which supports communities across Ireland to play a greater role in promoting the integration of migrants, and is open to organisations operating at regional and national level. NIF 2023 results were announced in April 2024, with 18 projects being awarded grants with a combined total of over €2.8 million over a three-year period.

Ireland also receives EU Funding to support the integration and social inclusion of migrants. This includes, the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund, and the Integration and Employment of Migrants action through the European Social Fund+. As an example of how these funds can support progress and services in counties, both Nasc and SECAD have benefited from these funds, and use these to assist in providing education, language, employment, wellbeing, and social inclusion supports for Non-EU Nationals, including international protection applicants based in Cork.

The Programme for Government 2025 provides a commitment to developing a new Migration and Integration Strategy for Ireland, detailing how we intend to meet the demands and the opportunities facing our society and economy over the next decade. Work is well advanced on this project, with a view to the Strategy being launched next year.