Sinn Féin call for independent inspection regime of emergency accommodation

Eoin Ó Broin is calling for a fully independent inspection regime of both public and private emergency accommodation to ensure the highest levels of safety for service users

Mr Ó Broin is calling for a fully independent inspection regime of both public and private emergency accommodation to ensure the highest levels of safety for service users. Picture: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie

Sinn Féin has launched new legislation to improve the inspection of emergency homeless accommodation.

Eoin Ó Broin says that the state is too reliant, particularly for single people, on dormitory-style emergency accommodation, on low threshold emergency accommodation and private sector accommodation.

Mr Ó Broin is calling for a fully independent inspection regime of both public and private emergency accommodation to ensure the highest levels of safety for service users.

The bill will give powers to HIQA to be able to independently inspect all emergency accommodation, public, private, as well as the Direct Provision centres, which Sinn Féin believe will be quicker to give them the power to set a new standard.

The Dublin Regional Homeless Executive previously established standards for emergency accommodation, however, only applies to the public sector.

"In the private sector providers there is very, very little inspection, in fact virtually none during Covid, and it's not independent," Mr Ó Broin said.

"What the bill does today is very straightforward, it extends the powers of HIQA to undertake those independent inspections, in the context of the quality standards framework and I have to say I think this is something that the government should support and we will be seeking to introduce it as early as possible."

The launch comes after Owen Keegan, the chief executive of Dublin City Council, this week, said that tents gave an "edginess" to Dublin city.

Mr Ó Broin said the remarks were "rather unfortunate comments and in my view, contrary, hurtful comments about people who are forced to sleep rough in our city."

"One of the reasons why people sleep rough whether its sleeping bags or tents, is because there are issues and concerns with some of the emergency accommodation," he said.

"There's a lot of really good quality emergency accommodation, there's a lot of really good frontline staff who work very hard in difficult circumstances to meet the needs of our homeless population and what we do know that both through a good quality reporting from the media, but also from our direct experience with people experiencing homelessness, that there are problems."