Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 January 2026
222. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the position regarding the consistent monthly increases in homeless figures; if steps are being taken to increase the availability of emergency accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4422/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraSupporting families and individuals experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness is a priority for my Department and Government.
Increased supply is key to addressing homelessness, meeting need and addressing the challenges in the housing market. The new housing plan, Delivering Homes, Building Communities, aims to speed up the delivery of new homes and tackle homelessness. The plan targets the construction of 300,000 homes, including 72,000 social homes and 90,000 affordable housing supports by the end of 2030.
Government is fully committed to working with all stakeholders to deliver social, affordable and cost rental homes at scale and to continue accelerating housing supply across all tenures. A record level of investment is being provided for the delivery of housing in 2026, with €5.2bn in Exchequer capital funding complemented by investment through the Land Development Agency (LDA) and lending from the Housing Finance Agency (HFA), bringing the total capital funding for housing in 2026 to over €9 billion. This record level of funding is supporting the delivery of social, affordable and cost rental homes. The 2026 capital funding will be supplemented by over €2 billion in current funding to address housing needs.
Prevention of homelessness in the first instance is essential with many prevention initiatives already underway in my Department and across Government. This includes the provision of social and affordable housing, HAP and homeless HAP, and our strong tenancy protection legislation. In order to ensure a fully aligned all-of-Government approach under the Plan, there is a commitment to develop a national Homelessness Prevention Framework within which homelessness can be prevented in a structured and planned way with tailored prevention measures for each potential at risk cohort. This Framework will be in place in 2026.
Critical to supporting households to exit homelessness is our continued investment in the social housing programme. €2.9bn of the capital funding for housing in 2026 has been allocated to support the delivery of social homes. This continued investment in the social housing programme will increase the supply of stock available to allocate to households on the social housing waiting list, including households in emergency accommodation.
The Delivering Homes, Building Communities plan also recognises and reaffirms the commitment that emergency accommodation will be provided to those that need it and my Department is working with local authorities to ensure that this commitment is met.
My Department's role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at a local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of homeless services rests with individual housing authorities.
My Department does not fund any homeless service directly but provides funding to housing authorities towards the operational costs of homeless accommodation and related services under Section 10 of the Housing Act, 1988. A homelessness consultative forum has been established in each of the nine homeless regions in accordance with Chapter 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2009. Decisions on the range and operation of emergency accommodation services including capacity requirements for emergency accommodation, and the funding required in each region are a matter for individual housing authorities in consultation with the Management Group of the relevant regional joint Homelessness Consultative Forum.
Budget 2026 provides a total allocation of €563.5m to address homelessness. This includes €513.5m in current funding to ensure local authorities can provide sufficient emergency accommodation and related services. Additionally, €50 million in capital funding will allow local authorities to invest in the provision of local authority or NGO owned emergency and transitional accommodation facilities.
My Department is acutely aware of the ongoing challenges faced in sourcing emergency accommodation and the work being done at local authority level to address these challenges and support homeless households. My Department has informed local authorities of the resources and commitments available to address the ongoing provision of capacity in emergency accommodation at local authority level, and my Department is inviting applications for capital funding to develop further supported emergency and transitional accommodation for families and individuals experiencing homelessness.
