'They look at colour': Lone-parent migrant families face racism in rental market, new report finds

Report found migrant families face discrimination in the private rental market, often linked to race and family status, inadequate supports, issues with the housing assistance payment and administrative burdens in contact with local authorities

Lone-parent migrant families have no realistic way of securing housing and are “effectively trapped” between direct provision and homelessness, a new report has found.

ActionAid Ireland said its peer-led research highlighted racism and discrimination in the rental market, even as Cabinet was set to agree on new asylum measures the charity described as “harsh” and would make situations for families “even more difficult”.

“Families are being told to leave direct provision, yet given no workable path to a safe, stable home. The stress this causes parents and children is avoidable and unacceptable,” ActionAid policy and programmes manager Cillian Quinn said.

The report is being published at a time when Ireland is undermining its commitments to refugee rights, affecting some of the most marginalised people in society.

The report, titled 'Between Hope and a Home', found a range of issues affecting lone-parent migrant families when told they must leave direct provision.

It said they face discrimination in the private rental market, often linked to race and family status, inadequate supports to assist them when leaving, issues with the housing assistance payment and administrative burdens in contact with local authorities.

On the issue of the housing assistance payment, the Simon Communities of Ireland has repeatedly highlighted the scarcity of accommodation available to rent for families in receipt of the payment countrywide.

The report includes testimonies from mothers on their experiences, including mother of three Eve, who said it appeared the Government was not aware of how difficult it is to secure housing in Ireland.

“It seems to me that they’re not aware — if it is hard for the local people, it is three, four times harder for us,” she said.

“So, their approach should be a little bit more human. Not that we are special but a less downgrading treatment. Like typically, an Irish person, they have families, they have friends, they have, you know, local connections.” 

Angela, a mother of two children, said: “I feel like they look at colour or other times they just read your surname and never get back to you.” 

ActionAid Ireland made several recommendations to the Government on foot of its report, including ending the practice of moving families away from schools and communities when they receive status and stopping the transfer of parents with children into emergency centres.

It also urged the Government to tell local authorities not to apply the local connection test to people exiting direct provision as instructed by the Housing Agency.

Mr Quinn added: “Just today, the minister for justice is putting forward very harsh measures to restrict family’s abilities to reunify.

This will mean that those granted asylum, like the women in our research, could have to wait five years to unify with their families. This is cruel and will not help with refugees overcoming trauma and integrating into Ireland.

Mr Quinn said the Government was “falsely” saying migrants were responsible for some of the housing crisis and political leadership “needs to be better”.

The Irish Refugee Council, meanwhile, also hit out at the plans and said it would break families apart.

Its chief executive Nick Henderson said: “These changes will result in families being torn apart for five years or more. We call on the Government to withdraw these cruel proposals immediately.”