Two-thirds of all Government funding for emergency accommodation of the homeless is devoted to Dublin projects. That gives a fair picture of the deprivation and despair on the streets of the capital. Dublin contains one-third of the population, but its social problems are way out of line with other parts of the country. And while the Government has addressed some of the more pressing issues of homelessness, this has been slow and fragmented.
The Minister of State for Housing and Urban Renewal, Noel Ahern, put the best possible face on things yesterday when he announced that €36.4 million is being set aside this year for the provision of accommodation and associated services for the homeless in Dublin. The money is divided between voluntary organisations running emergency shelters and soup kitchens and the four Dublin local authorities providing emergency accommodation and other services. Mr Ahern said that the Government was now in a position to look beyond providing emergency accommodation, but the raw figures on social housing do not offer much hope in that regard.
Limited progress is being made. Two years ago, more than half the funds allocated to local authorities were spent on emergency bed-and-breakfast accommodation. As a result, some landlords became extremely wealthy. Now, less than 20 per cent of the money is spent on such accommodation, with an increasing amount being devoted to supporting individuals in private and public rented accommodation and in helping them to escape homelessness.
Five weeks ago, the Taoiseach lent his authority to the publication of a special report which identified 15 black- spots in Dublin where unemployment exceeds 25 per cent and where there is persistent and acute poverty. The city council agreed that an integrated approach should be adopted to tackle inter-generational poverty and unemployment.
The Taoiseach - like his brother, Noel - represents an inner-city constituency. They know the extent of the problems and how difficult and expensive it will be to change the position of the disadvantaged, the chronically-unemployed and the homeless.
Under the Homeless Action Plan, the Government aims to eliminate homelessness by 2010. The Government has recently raised vast amounts of tax through stamp duties on private houses. Some of that money should be used to fund the building of social housing.