O’Sullivan expresses concern over numbers of children in emergency accomodation

Labour Housing spokesperson, Jan O’Sullivan TD, has expressed her concern over new figures showing the number of children living in emergency accommodation has surpassed the three thousand mark for the first time.

The figures are contained in the Homelessness Report for August released by the Department of Housing, Planning and Government.

Deputy O’Sullivan said:

“These figures paint a bleak picture about the reality of the crisis facing people around the country.

“I am particularly concerned that despite the soundbites from Government on progress being made, there are still around 1,400 families in emergency accommodation, and for the first time, just over three thousand children now living in hotels and B&Bs.

“It is simply not suitable for children to be in this type of accommodation, and I am really concerned about the potential long-term impact of these arrangements.

“Even the simple things like doing homework assignments or kicking a ball around outdoors can be a struggle if you’re living in a hotel, as well as the stigma attached to such a set-up for young children.

“We can only imagine how stressful it must be for the parents too, which as we can see from the figures, 770 of whom are single.

“I am also concerned that my own constituency of Limerick has one of the highest numbers of homeless people in the country, outside of Dublin.

“For some time now I have been calling for Limerick to be included in the Rent Pressure Zones, but just a couple of weeks ago, the region was again overlooked by Government.

“The rapidly rising rents in the city are contributing to the homelessness problem, with no safety nets in place for people struggling to keep up.

“With winter just around the corner, the Government is running out of time- and excuses- on dealing with this crisis.”