Homeless to sleep in Garda stations, A&E units ‘at Christmas’

Homeless families will end up sleeping in Garda stations and emergency departments at Christmas, a protest in Dublin heard on Tuesday night.

Several hundred people attended the demonstration, which called for action on the homelessness crisis and marked the first anniversary of the death of Jonathan Corrie, who was found dead in a doorway on Molesworth Street near Leinster House.

Campaigner Fr Peter McVerry told the crowd the Government must declare a homelessness emergency.

Some 40 families were being made homeless each month this time last year, but now the average is 73 a month, he said.

“Homeless families will end up having to sleep in Garda stations and hospital emergency departments for Christmas,” Fr McVerry said.

The demonstration was organised by the National Homeless and Housing Coalition. It began outside the GPO on O’Connell Street, and participants marched across the city centre to Leinster House.

Some scuffles

Barricades blocked demonstrators from marching up Kildare Street, which resulted in some scuffles between gardaí and those marching.

The Dublin Region Homeless Executive has said more than 2,100 adults and almost 1,300 children are accessing emergency accommodation every night. It has opened up an additional 175 extra beds for the winter.

Pat Green, of the Simon Community, said modular homes were not a long-term solution to housing the homeless.

Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly has promised 500 such homes would be provided to temporarily accommodate homeless families. The first 22 of these are scheduled to be in place before Christmas, with another 128 to follow shortly afterwards under a fast-tracked procurement process.

“Modular homes are a short-term measure to move families out of B&Bs and hotels. It is not a long-term solution,” Mr Green said.

“The extra 270 beds last Christmas and the additional 300 promised by December is a short-term measure and it does not solve homelessness. All it does is stop people sleeping rough on the street.”

Mr Green said the State was in a deep emergency crisis response.

‘Not enough’

“The reaction from Government is too little, too late and it is not enough,” said Mr Green.

Tony Geoghegan, chief executive of Merchant’s Quay Ireland Homeless & Drugs Services, said homelessness was not an issue confined to drug users.

Blaming drug users

“In this homeless crisis there is a tendency to blame it all on drug users as if all the people who are homeless, are homeless because of using drugs. We know that’s not the case,” he said.

“There are over 3,000 people in emergency accommodation, and when people have problems, drug, mental or alcohol problems get filtered down to the bottom. They become the most difficult people to try and get into private or emergency accommodation.”

Mr Geoghegan questioned how people could receive the help they need to treat drug or alcohol issues if they were sleeping on the streets.

“It is untenable for this crisis to keep going on as it is because the numbers are increasing, and it can’t be beyond the wit of the Government if they want to do something about it,” he said.

“Housing is a right. Just because someone has an issue with drugs or alcohol or a mental health problem, that does not mean they should have to sleep on the street. Everyone is entitled to somewhere to live and that’s a basic right.”