Latest news with #BeneficiariesofTemporaryProtection
The Journal
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Journal
Minister to bring forward plans to purchase Dublin's Citywest Hotel
JUSTICE MINISTER JIM O'Callaghan is to bring forward proposals to purchase the Citywest Hotel in Dublin for asylum-seeker accommodation. The minister got Cabinet approval today to extend the use of the hotel for international protection and Ukrainian applicants for another three months, until the start of September. This will cost an estimated €17 million to cover lease of the facilities and the provision of services. Along with the proposal to purchase the 764-bedroom hotel, a detailed value for money appraisal will be brought to government shortly. Advertisement There is ongoing engagement between the minister's Department and the Department of Public Expenditure on the details of the planned purchase of the facility. The move to purchase the hotel comes as the Department of Justice stepped back from contentious plans to convert the site of the former Crown Paints in Coolock to Ipas accommodation. The site had been at the centre of many protests – some of which turned violent. The Citywest Transit Hub is used to provide emergency stay-over facilities for approximately 400-450 IP applicants and separately accommodation for 1,350 Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection. Need more clarity and context on how migration is being discussed in Ireland? Check out our new FactCheck Knowledge Bank for essential reads and guides to finding good information online. Visit Knowledge Bank Related Reads Gary Gannon: Fear is what drives immigration protests in neglected communities, not hatred Anti-immigration picket over refugee accommodation sparks tensions in Dublin's Liberties Opinion: Irish people being against immigration is like Brazilian people being against football Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Extra.ie
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Extra.ie
OPW in more hot water over cost of refugee schemes
The Office of Public Works (OPW) is at the centre of another spending controversy after it emerged that modular homes in a housing development for Ukrainian refugees cost almost twice as much as units on another, similar site. Figures provided by outgoing Integration Minister Norma Foley revealed a €200,000-plus difference in the cost of building units in the two schemes. An opposition leader this weekend said the OPW has 'serious questions to answer' as he called for the Dáil spending watchdog to investigate the matter. Outgoing Integration Minister Norma Foley. Pic: Niall Carson/PA Wire Ms Foley confirmed 62 'new modular accommodation units' housing 248 people were built at the Columb Barracks site in Mullingar, operated by the Land Development Agency (LDA), at an average cost of 'approximately €220,000'. In response to parliamentary queries from Aontú leader Peadar Tòibín, Ms Foley said the cost of the modular 42sq m (560sq ft) units is 'inclusive of supply, delivery, fitting out and the site development and water connection costs'. However, the minister confirmed far higher costs to build similar modular units under the Government's Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection (BOTP) Rapid Build Programme, which she said is being led by the OPW 'in conjunction with my department'. Ms Foley confirmed 572 units were built in sites across the country where 2,312 residents 'moved into their new homes'. And she said works 'are currently ongoing at the final development at a HSEowned site in Heywood, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, which has been identified as viable by OPW to accommodate 82 units'. Haywood Place, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary. Pic: Tom Honan Ms Foley said the cost of the programme is estimated to be €253.7m, but she added that, as 'the project is still ongoing, it is not possible to fully specify a final overall programme figure'. Asked the average cost per modular unit under the scheme, the department told 'The average cost of the units is €436,000. This includes the cost of the units, inclusive of supply, delivery and provision of loose electrical and household items, site development and utility connection costs, etc relating to the overall development. The units are 44sq m (474sq ft).' Commenting on the huge price difference between similar modular refugee developments, Aontú leader Peadar Tòibín said 'the OPW has serious questions to answer'. The Meath West TD told 'There appears to be neither reason nor rationale behind the scenario where similar housing comes in at twice the price, especially where land costs are not relevant. Once again, the taxpayer is left footing the bill for serial ineptitude, and this must be examined by the Public Accounts Committee.' The OPW has been mired in controversy in recent months over wasteful spending on several taxpayer-funded projects. These include the infamous €336,000 bike shed, the €1.4m security 'hut' at an entrance to Government Buildings, and €490,000 spent on a 70-metre 'wall of shame' outside the headquarters of the Workplace Relations Commission. Peadar Tóibín. Pic: Fran Veale Mr Tòibín said of the huge refugee accommodation costs: 'These units are temporary and will not last more than 50 or 60 years, yet more has been spent on them by the Government than it would cost to purchase an actual real concrete house which could remain in public ownership for centuries.' Last September, a report published by the Comptroller and Auditor General found the average cost of a modular home for Ukrainian refugees had increased to €442,000 – almost the same amount cited by the department this week for units under this Rapid Build Programme. This figure is also more than double the initial €200,000 per unit estimated by the Department of Integration to build 500 modular homes in June 2022. The proposals were brought forward in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the arrival of tens of thousands of Ukrainian refugees here. An initial budget of €100m was approved, with the expected delivery of modular units by the end of February 2023. But it rose to €140m by November 2022, with the OPW citing contractor costs and VAT for the increase. Costs rose to €155m in January 2023, increasing the cost per unit to an average of €310,000. Asked about the huge price disparity for the different refugee schemes, the OPW said: 'This is a matter for the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY).' The DCEDIY said in a statement: 'Ten Rapid Build Sites have been delivered. The final site, in Heywood, Clonmel, will be completed by end June 2025. This will bring the final output of the programme to 654 units, with a capacity to accommodate 2,640 BOTPs [Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection fleeing the war in Ukraine].' Explaining the price difference, a DCEDIY spokesman said: 'Many of the sites were sub-optimal, requiring significant remedial work [which added to the cost] .' They said of Columb Barracks: 'The cost of each unit was approximately €220,000 (42sq m/452sq ft), inclusive of supply, delivery, fitting out and the site development and water connection costs.'
Extra.ie
14-05-2025
- Business
- Extra.ie
Cuts to pay for housing refugees will cost the state more
Cuts to payments for pledged accommodation for Ukrainian refugees mean the State may have to pay millions more to house them in hotels, guesthouses and B&Bs. Internal documents obtained by show officials in the Department of Public Expenditure are concerned about the knock-on effects from cutting the monthly payment from €800 to €600 in February. In a memo prepared for Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers, they warned that 'there is a risk this could undermine ongoing efforts to reduce reliance on expensive commercial accommodation'. Pic: Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos Integration Minister Norma Foley wrote to Mr Chambers in February seeking to reduce the Accommodation Recognition Payment (ARP), a cut that takes effect from June. Ms Foley said the reduction sought to 'balance' maintaining the scheme 'while minimising interference with the private rental market'. She added: 'Reducing the payment will facilitate winding down the scheme in an orderly way in advance of the Temporary Protection Directive [which is due to lapse in March 2026]. 'I believe this approach will help to manage expectations of pledgers, BOTPs [Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection] and NGOs supporting them.' No business case was provided by Ms Foley to support the decision. An estimate of the savings associated with the change was requested by Department of Public Expenditure officials, but none was provided. Pic: Shutterstock The officials provided their own high-level analysis of three potential scenarios for Mr Chambers, telling him over 1,000 people each month had been added to the scheme in the past year. 'There is clearly very strong demand for the scheme. It may be the case that the 25% cut will have a limited impact, particularly when it will still remain above the initial rate of €400,' they wrote. In a scenario where the cut resulted in a 10% drop in additional people availing of the ARP each month from April, it would cost an extra € 7 million by the end of the year. This would amount to a rise of 100 people in commercial accommodation who otherwise would have been in pledged accommodation. In the second scenario, where 25% fewer additional people availed of the scheme, it would cost € 18 million more by the end of 2024. In the final scenario, which assumed a flatline of people in the ARP, this could lead to an increase in cost of € 76 million. Pic: Shutterstock However, the officials noted that 'this seems somewhat unlikely given the demand for the scheme to date'. The official noted work to reduce Ukrainians in commercial accommodation since October meant the fallout from the monthly rate cut could be met in the existing budget. The note says the Department of Integration told them a political 'consensus' was reached after discussions between Ms Foley, Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Minister of State at the Department of Justice Colm Brophy. Asked for their view on the impact of the measure, Department of Integration officials said they believed there would be an impact but it was 'impossible to quantify'. 'Some host applicants may close their applications and BOTPs will need to move elsewhere,' they wrote. Pic: Getty Images The officials conceded there would be a 'significant cost' if there was a reduction in the level of pledged accommodation, and Ukrainians had to find accommodation in the 'already straitened private rental market or seek to secure State contracted accommodation'. 'If the latter was to transpire, this would result in significant additional costs and may be at variance with the department's intended policy,' they wrote. The Integration Department suggested Ukrainians could make a 'top-up' payment to their hosts to bridge the gap rather than have the tenancy terminated, but this was 'between the parties themselves'. 'It should also be noted that pledged properties (many of which would fall under ARP) provide a valuable exit mechanism from the 90-day Designated Accommodation Centres for BOTPs who arrived post March 2024, and who are not entitled to State-contracted accommodation,' the officials also wrote. The memo says that between July 2022 and December 2024, around € 364 million was paid out via the scheme, with € 141 million of this in 2024. In comparison, the Department of Integration spent € 1.143 billion on its Ukraine response in 2024, with the biggest driver being commercial/ serviced accommodation. As of February 18, 2025, there were 26,937 Ukrainians in commercial/received accommodation (e.g. hotels and guesthouses). This is down from a peak of 59,000 in November 2023. In response to Ms Foley's request, Mr Chambers said he consented to the reduction, but that an analysis of the impacts needed to be undertaken. 'I would highlight the potential risk of this proposal possibly reducing the number of Ukrainians moving out of commercial accommodation, which is significantly more expensive per night,' he wrote. Former integration minister Roderic O'Gorman told 'These documents from [Public Expenditure] show the lack of a clear economic rationale for the decision to reduce the recognition payment, which keeps thousands of Ukrainians out of directly provided State accommodation, which we know is far more expensive.' A Department of Justice spokesman said: 'Although the reduction has been flagged for some months, the number of ARP applications has continued to increase. As of May 11, 2025, there are active claims in payment for over 21,000 properties, an increase from some 19,800 at the end of February.'
