Monthly homelessness figures will not be published amid work-to-rule action
The Department of Housing confirmed on Friday morning that September’s figures would not be released this afternoon due to the industrial action.
The monthly homelessness report will not be published today due to ongoing industrial action in the public service.
Public service workers are currently engaging in a work-to-rule as pay talks continue at the Workplace Relations Commission.
The monthly homelessness figures are normally published at 2pm on the last Friday of each month, providing an update on the number of people in emergency accommodation during the previous month.
However, the Department of Housing confirmed on Friday morning that September’s figures would not be released this afternoon due to the industrial action.
“The administration of homeless services is organised across nine administrative regions, with one regional lead authority in each of the regions having overall responsibility for submitting data to the Department,” a spokesperson said.
“Due to the current Industrial Relations action, the Department has not received returns from all regional lead authorities.
“With incomplete data, the Department is not in a position to publish the report as usual today.” Many opposition parties had already scheduled press conferences in Leinster House for Friday afternoon to discuss the figures.
The latest homelessness figures, published last month, confirmed that another record was reached in August.
A total of 17,885 people were homeless in Ireland at the end of August. The figures showed that 5,830 children and 12,055 adults were homeless during the month.
The total was up slightly from 17,527 in July, which was itself a small increase on June’s figure.
The homelessness figures do not account for people sleeping rough on the streets or those who are couch-surfing.
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