Justice Minister Simon Harris has said that international protection seekers sleeping in tents in snow and freezing temperatures is “not the optimal situation”.
It follows news that 79 international protection applicants have been sleeping in tents in Knockalisheen, Co Clare, as snow battered the country.
This was despite a promise from Integration Minister Roderic O’Gorman in December that these tents would not be used again.
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The Department of Integration has said that it is “not in a position” to move these people to another location.
Speaking at a citizenship ceremony in the RDS in Dublin on Friday, Minister Harris acknowledged that it was “not optimal”.
He said: “Of course, no one wants to see anyone in that situation. But we also have to be honest with people from day one of this humanitarian crisis and we have been.
“We've never suggested responding to the biggest humanitarian crisis of our time was going to be straightforward or easy. In fact, it's extraordinarily challenging, not just on a daily basis, but on an hourly basis some days in trying to provide shelter for people fleeing persecution. “I'm very proud of the fact that the country has managed to welcome so many people here, to keep people safe. That is a good thing.
“But there's no doubt from time to time significant issues do arise.
“Of course, nobody would suggest this is anyway an optimal situation. We're constantly working to come up with new ways of providing people with accommodation.”
Cathal Crowe, a Fianna Fáil TD for Clare, told the Irish Mirror that regardless of the weather, the tents are not suitable accommodation for refugees.
He said: “I’m very disappointed that these tents are being used. These tents were put up in July and I cautioned at the time that these were going up during the hottest days of the year, but it would be a very different situation come the winter months.
“Things get lost in the political noise of Leinster House and nothing happened
“I spoke about it in December. The men were moved but the tents weren’t taken down.
“Part of me regrets that the debate always revolves around what temperature it is because I take the view that we should have a baseline standard of accommodation.
“I would think that tented accommodation falls well beneath that baseline for anyone.
“They’re military-style tents. There's a rudimentary heating system. They have divan-style beds, they have sleeping bags. I know during the last cold snap, the heating system didn’t work at all times.
“Imagine being outdoors in -6 or -7 degrees with just a bit of canvas keeping you from the elements. It is chronic. These are temperatures that would kill somebody
“When I'm in Dublin, I often pass homeless people in tents. I don't differentiate at all.
“Tented accommodation for anyone is wrong and it's inhumane.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Integration told The Mirror: "The Department will endeavour to ensure that the use of tents at Knockalisheen is a short-term measure but in the context of the accommodation shortage, the priority must remain on providing shelter. The tents in use are ‘winter ready’ and heated."
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