Social Democrats Housing spokesperson Cian O’Callaghan TD today described the two-tier system of emergency accommodation for homeless people as completely unacceptable.
Commenting, Deputy O’Callaghan said:
“Brendan Kenny of Dublin City Council confirmed at today’s meeting of the Oireachtas Housing Committee that the National Quality and Standards Framework for homeless service providers is not being applied to private providers of emergency accommodation. This directly contradicts what the Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien told the Dáil yesterday when he stated that these standards are being applied to all providers, including private providers.
“Fifty percent of emergency accommodation providers in Dublin are now private providers. It is absolutely unacceptable that people living in private emergency accommodation do not have the protection of any quality standards. The creation of a two-tier system of emergency accommodation is a very regressive step.
“It is especially concerning that the Minister for Housing is unaware of the creation of a two-tier system under his watch. I’m calling on the Minister to uphold his statement to the Dáil yesterday and to ensure that the National Quality and Standards Framework applies to all homeless service providers.”
January 29, 2021