Gormanston camp to accommodate Ukrainian refugees from Monday

A tented village is to open at Gormanston Army Camp on Monday to accommodate new arrivals to Ireland fleeing war in Ukraine and asylum seekers from other countries, the Taoiseach said this morning.

Due to a shortage of State-provided accommodation, around 250 people are staying at the old terminal building at the airport - of those about 150 are women and children fleeing their home in Ukraine.

Around 41,000 people have come here fleeing the war in Ukraine, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said, and about 30,000 have been offered accommodation.

Mr Martin also said there had been unprecedented numbers of people coming to Ireland from other countries seeking protection this year.

The Department of Equality said Ukrainian refugees are not being turned away from Ireland due to current pressures.

With the CityWest Transit Hub facility full, the Department of Children last night said that anyone arriving into the country would have to stay in Dublin Airport if they did not have somewhere to stay.

It said that the Government was working intensively to put alternative arrangements in place with immediate effect.

The operator of Dublin Airport said it had made the Old Central Terminal Building available to the Department of Children to help them facilitate the arrival of Ukrainian nationals into Ireland.

The Taoiseach will meet ministers today to discuss the shortage of accommodation for Ukrainians and others seeking protection in Ireland.

The Ukraine Civil Society Forum (UCSF) that includes 65 civil society organisations involved in the emergency response and settlement of Ukrainian refugees to Ireland, has reiterated its call for a fresh approach and a national lead to be put in place immediately to manage and oversee the accommodation, settlement, and integration of refugees.*

This follows yesterday’s announcement that the Citywest hotel, now accommodating 1,050 refugees, has no place for new arrivals to sleep tonight. The Forum said that, while the national response to the initial refugee emergency was very positive, it was clear for some time that the reliance on hotels is unsustainable. More medium term solutions need to be activated with urgency. There is an onus now on An Taoiseach to galvanise other arms of the State to step in and bring a fresh approach.

The National Co-ordinator for the Ukraine Civil Society Forum, Emma Lane-Spollen, said “The crisis in Citywest will happen again if we don’t do something new. We need the big decisions to be made now. A new agency, a national lead and a thought through plan. We have to move from crisis mode to get on top of the situation.”

She continued, “We must remember that we are talking about women, children and the elderly, all already traumatised, we need to make them safe. The war in Ukraine is not ending, and Ireland will continue to have to meet its international obligations to all refugees.”

The Forum will continue to work with Government, across civil society and with local community groups to identify the best possible solution and maximise all possible accommodation options.