Homelessness hits record high as minister rolls back pledge

The number of people in emergency homeless accommodation across Ireland has increased to a record-high of 15,286, according to the latest Government figures.

The unwelcome statistic came as Housing Minister James Browne appeared to roll back on a Government commitment to end homelessness by 2030.

The latest data shows that 10,683 adults and 4,603 children were accessing emergency accommodation during the last full week of January.

The adult figure is above the previous record of 10,541 seen last November, while the figure for children is just short of the previous all-time high of 4,658 seen in the same month.

It reverses a dip in the numbers for December which were reported last month, reflecting an almost-annual trend where the figures ease over the Christmas period before resuming a climb.

In general, the number of people accessing emergency accommodation has been steadily increasing from approximately 8,000 in mid-2021.

The statistics do not include people sleeping rough, those that may be couch-surfing or homeless in hospitals or prisons, or those who are in shelter for asylum seekers or domestic violence centres.

Mr Browne’s predecessor and Fianna Fail colleague, Darragh O’Brien, set an ambition to eradicate homelessness through the Housing For All strategy.

However, speaking on Friday, the new minister said that he would not be making a similar pledge.

He added: “The only promise I ever make is to do the very best I can.

“I don’t want anybody in homelessness, we want to ensure that we can get to that point but it’s really challenging.

“Supply is the only real solution to ending homelessness.”

The latest figures show the number of people in emergency accommodation for the week he took office.

Mr Browne added: “The commitment is to get that homeless figure down as quickly as possible, but there won’t be a specific timeline in relation to it.”

Pressed on whether there was no longer a pledge to end homelessness, Mr Browne said: “The commitment from me to end homelessness, that’s where we want to get to.

“In terms of dates or anything like that, we are examining all of that and how we can get there.

“But projections and dates aren’t going to deliver a single apartment.”

Sinn Fein said Mr Browne “effectively threw in the towel” on ending homelessness.

The opposition party’s housing spokesman Eoin O Broin said: “I think it’s deeply disappointing. It is possible to end long-term homelessness and the need to sleep rough by 2030 if the right policy measures are put in place.

“The fact that the minister neither has the will nor the wherewithal to do that just shows that this Government are effectively accepting the fact that homelessness is going to continue to rise – and I think that’s utterly shameful.”

Homelessness charities also expressed disappointment in the seasonal reversal of the figures.

Focus Ireland CEO Pat Dennigan said: “It is crucial that Government does not let just give up, it is still possible to turn things around and achieve significant goals like ending long term homelessness by 2030.”

Dublin Simon CEO Catherine Kenny said: “The homelessness crisis is not an inevitability — it is a direct result of political choices.

“What people need are able pathways out of homelessness — homes they can afford, security they can rely on, and policies that prioritise long-term solutions.

Social Democrats deputy leader Cian O’Callaghan described the minister’s comments as a “serious step back”.

“Deadlines may not deliver housing but not having a deadline to eliminate homelessness isn’t going to eradicate homelessness either,” he said.

He added: “Simply throwing up their hands and saying they don’t want to do this, they don’t see themselves as capable of doing this, is the wrong approach.”

Mr O’Callaghan and Mr Browne were speaking to reporters at the sod-turning for a Land Development Agency project to deliver 400 homes at Clongriffin in north Dublin.

The event came before the publication of the latest emergency accommodation figures, which Mr Browne said “haven’t been going the direction we want for some time”.

The figures for his first full month of office, February, will not be revealed until the end of March.

The minister said he would take personal “responsibility” for the emergency accommodation figures.

Pressed on whether he would accept that a further rise in March’s figures would be his fault, Mr Browne said: “It’s my responsibility, put it that way.”

Meanwhile, the minister said private investment and financing was necessary to reach housing targets.

However, Mr Browne said he was yet to meet with any institutional investors.

Asked if he had any concerns that housing delivery would be lower this year than in 2024, the minister said it is “very early to be getting into that kind of predictions”.

“But we know that real missing piece is the delivery of apartments, we have seen the collapse in the delivery of apartments, commencements and planning permissions for apartments,” he added.