Sir, Several years ago, following the deaths of several homeless people on the street, the Minister for the Environment gave a commitment that no adult "would have to sleep on the streets of Dublin, if they chose not to. Another night shelter was opened. By and large, that commitment has been honoured.
It is ironic that no such commitment has ever been given by" the Minister for Health in relation to homeless children. Night after night, homeless children are being told by the Eastern Health Board social worker that no accommodation is available and that they will have to sleep on the street. Some of those children are being told that no accommodation will be available to them for the foreseeable future and that there is no point in them even requesting it.
Why, in this day and age, can a Minister not give a commitment that no child should have to sleep on the streets of Dublin or anywhere else? Yours etc., Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice, Upper Sherrard St., Dublin 1.