The Oireachtas Special Committee on #Covid19 response is due to re-start in the next few minutes, focus on Direct Provision.

Reps from Department of Justice (responsible for provision of service) and from HSE (responsible for the healthcare of residents) will be present.

It is fair to say that there has been a lot of back and forth between these two bodies in terms of who is responsible for what, so having them both in the same sitting will hopefully be of great benefit to getting answers related to #Covid19 in #DirectProvision.

Mary Butler of Fianna Fáil is chairing this session, preliminaries just underway.

Three representatives each from Department of Justice and HSE.

Focus will be #DirectProvision.

@JOEdotie

Oonagh Buckley of Department of Justice making her opening statement.

The HSE advice is that non-family members sharing a room are considered a household, this is not just the case in DP but other such settings.

Numbers in centres reduced to accommodate physical distancing.

Relocated 600 residents, and procured over 1,550 permanent and temporary new Direct Provision beds.

This was done with "no little controversy" due to the short time frame and lack of community engagement.

Some of the measures introduced at Direct Provision centres, as per the statement;

- Managers have been asked to improve regularity of cleaning
- Hand sanitiser has been provided
- PPE distributed as required
- Centre managers have staggered mealtimes, laundries etc.

Norma Foley, Fianna Fáil

Immediately raises Skellig Star Hotel centre in Cahersiveen.

- did the HSE fail to inform the DoJ of a case of #Covid19 in a Swords Hotel/DP centre?
- why were residents not tested before moving centres?
- who overruled HSE Cork/Kerry concerns?

Dr Kevin Kelleher

- normally, the individual case is spoken to and their close contacts are determined. Says it is unlikely the outbreak in Skellig Star came from this case
- testing programme at that time was for symptomatic individuals
- not answered

NEW

The HSE is of the view that the first case of Covid-19 in Skellig Star was 30th March

Deputy Foley says she has evidence of communication with DoJ from 24th March of a confirmed case, that was first confirmed on the 20th of March.

Would make Swords case v important.

25 positive cases of #Covid19 in Skellig Star.

Norma Foley says that the 'deep-cleaning' that is taking place in the Skellig Star Hotel is done using a "Mr. Price Star Drops" cleaner, a white vinegar-based cleaning spray, that is €1.49 a bottle.

@JOEdotie

HSE there were a number of 'teething problems' when the centre opened due to the short time window available to open the centre.

"We didn't have the time to do what we would normally do"

@JOEdotie

"We are happy that it is working well for the residents that remain in the (Skellig Star) centre"

Oonagh Buckley, Department of Justice.

Brilliant questioning from Norma Foley.

Pa Daly, Sinn Féin.

Raises issues around Garda vetting and Túsla training of staff, as reported by @Mickcliff in the Examiner.

Oonagh Buckley confirms that "all staff who need to be Garda vetted have been vetted, as of Monday."

Describes it as an "unacceptable thing that happened"

Deputy Daly asks about the initial Department of Justice investigation of the Skellig Star hotel in September of 2019, and asks whether it was up to minimum standards?

New standards coming into force next year.

An offer of some other, own door, accommodation was made by locals and was turned down by the DoJ, is that correct?

Oonagh Buckley confirmed it was, explains DP is not just a bed for the night, there are other services such as food etc. that must be provided.

Was another inspection undertaken after September and before residents were moved in? Who made the decision?

- inspection question was not answered
- Oonagh Buckley says she took the decision, contract signed on 16th March

Jennifer Carroll-MacNeill, Fine Gael

- How many centres do you have operating now compared to before?

- Residents in 84 locations, including 47 DP centres, 33 emergency accommodation, 4 self-isolating facilities and 5 others used for "density reduction"

Deputy Carroll-MacNeill asks for clarification around figures

- 14 outbreaks in DP centres, 175 cases linked to these outbreaks, is this the sum total?

- Dr Kelleher tells us that it should be the total, but that is what they explicitly know about... they will clarify if needed

Per @IrishRefugeeCo, 83% of residents did not have access to info about the pandemic, what was done?

- Rang managers on daily basis, started centre newsletters for managers + residents, published in major languages, WhatsApp broadcasts, appropriate signage.

Oonagh Buckley "We haven't had a single, serious case in our Direct Provision centres".

Per last week's figures, there had been 14 hospitalisations from #Covid19 in 171 cases in #DirectProvision.

Joe O'Brien, Green Party.

Were HSE notified of the movement of residents to Cahersiveen?

HSE were informed on March 16th, multiple engagements over following few days to ensure access to healthcare was available.

Was the building checked by HSE prior?

No, not normal practice.

How many people in Direct Provision have been tested and not tested?

So far; 1,734 tested, 350 cases. Positivity rate 6-8%, in the population it is at 3%.

I'm a little confused here, a number of 175 cases was only given a few minutes ago.

Duncan Smith, Labour.

Have the Dept considered a fast-tracking approach for permission to remain or an amnesty during this period?

There are nearly 1,000 people with permission to remain who are still in DP centres.

The Dept have not been asked to 'fast-track' or change things