Peter McVerry criticised for advice to swerve emergency hostels

Minister for the Environment at odds with campaigning priest over accommodation

Fr Peter McVerry has been criticised by a Cabinet Minister for advising some destitute people to sleep rough rather than sleep in emergency hostels.

“I have been personally advising some homeless people to sleep rough,” the campaigning priest told Reuna Ireland’s think-in on Thursday.

Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly disagreed, saying he “did not believe sleeping on the streets is better than sleeping in emergency accommodation”.

“I ’d like to meet Fr McVerry; I’ve never spoken to the man. I’ve met with his organisation on a number of occasions and arranged meetings with him. On one occasion he cancelled with short notice; that’s fine, these things happen but I’d be happy to sit down with him at any time.

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“I think we have the same agenda and . . . it’s time to stop sniping and to work together,” he said.

In February, Mr Kelly called on Fr McVerry to be more positive in his comments on the housing and homelessness crisis.

Housing crisis

Speaking at a national housing conference in February, Fr McVerry described the Government’s plan to provide 35,000 new social housing units by 2020 and end homelessness by 2016 as “Alice in Wonderland politics”.

Mr Kelly said he had a productive meeting with Dublin city councillors on Wednesday about the housing crisis.

“We have committed that all funding to refurbish every single social housing unit that is boarded up will be provided by my department, to get as many crews out there as we can and do this quickly as possible. We have also ensured there is no budgetary issues with regard to homelessness,” he said.

“The numbers and the scale [of homelessness] is like something we have never seen before but we are continuing all the time to put every resource to tackle it and I won’t be found wanting,” he said.