Nick Henderson, CEO of the Irish Refugee Council said:

“We welcome the Ombudsman’s report [available here]. He clearly has grave concerns about the Direct Provision system which echo what we and many others have said for some time. His statement that it is ‘simply unacceptable that people who have sought refuge in this country can find themselves in accommodation that is entirely unsuitable for their needs for a prolonged length of time’, is striking.”  

 “In particular the report raises serious concerns about the use of emergency accommodation and the problems people experience while living in it: location, schooling, food, sharing of rooms and laundry facilities. As an organisation we have been working with people living in such accommodation for the last year and a half and have also seen many of these issues.“

“It is also worth highlighting that in January the Ombudsman made recommendations to political parties in terms of programme for government content. These include extending the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction to include investigation of complaints about the process leading up to international protection decisions, which we would support.”

 "The Ombudsman’s report is another in a long line of many. In the last 12 months, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, the UN’s Committee for Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Special Rapporteur for Children, the Oirechtas’ Joint Committee on Justice and Equality and the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland have all published strong criticism of the Direct Provision system.” See our Twitter thread here: https://twitter.com/IrishRefugeeCo/status/1253211116299223040

 ENDS