More asylum seekers spending longer in Direct Provision says report

More than two thirds of asylum seekers living in direct provision centres have been there for at least three years, according to a report by the state’s Reception and Integration Agency (RIA).

That comes despite a dramatic fall in the numbers of people claiming asylum here in recent years and a fall in the amount of money spent by the State in housing them.

According to the RIA annual report for last year: “By the end of 2013, 68.2% of RIA residents had first claimed international protection in Ireland three or more years previously: The percentage in 2012 was 59.4%.”