The bill for housing Ukrainian refugees in Ireland will hit one billion euros within weeks, new figures have revealed .
The state has so far paid out €840 million, of which €350 million was spent since the beginning of this year. The Department for Children, Equality, Disability , Integration and Youth which is responsible for looking after Ukrainians who came here to flee the war, confirmed most of the money was used to provide accommodation .
It is understood that millions is owed to housing providers across the country, and in many cases three to five months in arrears were paid up to date last week. The DVEDY said: ”This year the Dept has paid out almost €350 million. This has been paid out on a weekly basis rising steadily over time.
“This week and last week the Department paid out a somewhat larger volume of payments than in previous weeks, including a number of very overdue invoices in line with our commitment to prioritise these. We are now consistently paying out substantially more than the invoices that are coming in and therefore progressively reducing the payments backlog.
“While payments remain overdue they are now much more likely to be overdue for a shorter period of time, reducing the impact on providers' cash flow. We accept that more needs to be done and we remain committed to the best practice of paying all correct invoices within 30 days. The Department has expended over €860 million on Ukraine accommodation and related costs since the invasion of Ukraine and the start of refugee arrivals last year.”
The state currently has approximately 800 contracts with emergency accommodation suppliers for people fleeing the war in Ukraine. They provide 45,089 bed spaces at the moment. The Department said these contracts are renewed on an ongoing basis with dozens expiring in any given month.
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