Aontú Leader Peadar Tóibín has reacted to information he has received from a Parliamentary Question that reveals the state is now paying over €1 billion a year on IPAS accommodation.
The Meath West TD said:
“€1 billion is an eyewatering figure, and the fact the state is now paying €2.75m per day on accommodation for international protection applications is an incredibly serious situation. The increase in the numbers of people being accommodated is huge. In 2021 IPAS accommodated just over 7,000 people. Today that figure is 32,000 people. The state spend on this area has increased by 54% in just the last year. The average cost per night accommodation has increased from €57 in 2022 to €84 in 2024. That’s a 47% increase in just 2 years. That’s serious inflation”.
“We need a system that differentiates in a fast and efficient manner, between those who need help, and those who don’t. We need to provide shelter for those who need help and return those who don’t need help home in a speedy manner. The whole application process is still taking far too long. This means that the state is providing accommodation for thousands of people who will ultimately fail in their application, who don’t need asylum. There is no doubt that the government’s lackadaisical attitude towards the asylum process to date, not enforcing deportations etc, has sent out a message internationally that Ireland is not a strict country for the processing of asylum applications. This may well be feeding into the big jump in applicant numbers”.
“The government have serious questions to answer on the procurement of accommodation. A small number of accommodation providers are getting very rich very fast out of the government’s system. Seeing cost per night stay jump by 47% in 2 years is extremely damaging to the taxpayer. There has been talk about state provision of accommodation. But like so many other aspects of government delivery, this is glacial.
“The country cannot afford either financially or reputationally to see such poor management of the system. It is imperative that Ministers fix the system immediately”.
Note to editor: PQ text below
______________________________________________
For Written Answer on : 11/02/20251b
Question Number(s): 526,527,528 Question Reference(s): 4175/25, 4176/25, 4177/25
Department: Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth
Asked by: Peadar Tóibín T.D.
______________________________________________
QUESTION
* To ask the Minister for Children; Equality; Disability; Integration and Youth the amount that has been paid by her Department in each of the past five years to companies that provide accommodation to persons applying for asylum in Ireland.
– Peadar Tóibín T.D.
For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 11 February, 2025.
* To ask the Minister for Children; Equality; Disability; Integration and Youth the average cost per night of providing accommodation for persons applying for asylum in Ireland for each of the past five years.
– Peadar Tóibín T.D.
For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 11 February, 2025.
* To ask the Minister for Children; Equality; Disability; Integration and Youth the number of individual bed nights that have been provided by the State to persons applying for asylum in Ireland for each of the past five years.
– Peadar Tóibín T.D.
For WRITTEN answer on Tuesday, 11 February, 2025.
REPLY
Thank you for your question, Deputy.
Ireland has seen a sharp increase in the number of people applying for international protection since 2022 and our Department provides accommodation for almost 33,000 international protection applicants today, about 9,000 of whom are children with their families.
Providing reception conditions – accommodation and other basic supports – to people seeking international protection is part of Irish and EU law and is also part of our humanitarian duty to provide shelter to people fleeing war and persecution in their home country.
At the moment, over 90% of all IPAS accommodation is provided commercially. A small proportion of our accommodation is provided on state-owned sites, but the development of a sustainable accommodation system over the coming months and years will see less reliance on commercial providers over time. This is provided for in the 2024 Comprehensive Accommodation Strategy, and in the 2025 Programme for Government.
Please see, in tabular format, the total spend on IPAS accommodation, noting the 2024 figure is provisional pending completion of the 2024 Appropriation Accounts.
It is important to note that in the period from 2022 onward, numbers of international protection applicants increased sharply, and creating an increase in overall costs directly related to this increase. By way of illustration, at the end of 2021, IPAS accommodated just over 7,000 people, and today, we accommodate over 32,000 people.
The costs outlined below pertain to accommodation for international protection applicants, and also including transport, facilities management, utilities and other related costs.
|
2019 |
€129,408,000 |
|
2020 |
€183,215,000 |
|
2021 |
€190,856,000 |
|
2022 |
€356,554,000 |
|
2023 |
€651,756,000 |
|
2024 |
€1.005 billion |
The average cost of accommodating a person in international protection accommodation centres, including State-owned and commercial, is set out in the table below.
This includes all accommodation and ancillary costs such as facilities management and other related expenditure. The average cost per night fluctuates due to a wide range of factors including the number of residents and the nature of type of accommodation centres developed and contracted with.
|
Year |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
|
Year |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
|
Average |
n/a |
€72.00 |
€57.00 |
€76.80 |
€84.00 |
Details of individual contracts or contractual arrangements between the Department and external providers are considered commercially sensitive. In order to preserve the Department’s negotiating position, the costs paid to providers or the details of contracts are not published, as making this data available to other accommodation providers would not serve the public interest in terms of value for money.
The Public Sector Reform Plan requires that government departments and agencies publish online reports detailing Purchase Orders (PO) relating to payments for goods, services or works procured to a value greater than €20,000. These are published, once per quarter, on gov.ie
(https://www.gov.ie/en/collection/dfdadb-department-of-children-and-youth-affairs-purchase-orders-for-20000-o/)
The Department does not provide a further breakdown of these payments at this time.
I trust this information is helpful.
