The Government did not fully prepare for the huge number of Ukrainian refugees who came to Ireland, opposition politicians said yesterday.
The claims came after the Government brought in new measures including how it assigns housing for Ukrainians seeking asylum.
Sinn Fein Senator Lynn Boylan accused the Government of a “failure to plan” for the numbers who came here recently.
Read More: Ukrainian refugees in Ireland will no longer be allowed to turn down multiple accommodation offers
She told RTE Radio One’s Saturday with Katie Hannon: “But back in February, they were talking about 200,000 refugees coming from Ukraine alone.
“So there’s been a failure to plan and there hasn’t been an all of Government approach.”
She said that Minister for Equality and Integration Roderic O’Gorman’s department is expected to do all the work when the whole Government needs to be involved.
She added: “We need the Minister for Housing to be on board, the Minister for Education, Minister for Health, so that we can put in place wraparound services.
“So if there are going to be modular homes going into communities and if those communities already have a lack of resources in terms of access to GPs or in terms of schools, then extra resources have to be put in there to help.”
Labour Deputy Aodhan O Riordain also told the same programme that options, such as modular housing, should have been followed through in recent months.
Separately, the Ukrainian Ambassador to Ireland confirmed her citizens are being told that the Irish Government can’t guarantee accommodation.
But Larysa Gerasko said she wanted to “underline” her gratitude to the Government and Irish people for welcoming Ukrainians and providing them with accommodation “under such horrible circumstances”.
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