Rebecca Moynihan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank all the witnesses for their presentations. It is clear where all the experts in this area who deal with local authorities every day sit. This is a case of taking a hammer to crack an egg. It is unworkable and provides for bad assessment criteria.

I recall during the great snow of 2010 people were refused access to longer-term emergency accommodation over the two weeks because they did not meet the habitual residence criterion. That was a local interpretation of it. They could only stay in each shelter that was set up for that cold weather initiative for a couple of nights. We know that when there are local interpretations, people fall through the cracks.

I want to ask about the EU and the case law that was affected by it but with regard to who is missing from the list in the general scheme, if the witnesses could send on to us the full and complete list of potential people who are missing from the scheme after the meeting, knowing who might be falling through the cracks would be helpful for us in our dealings with the Department. I take the Chair’s point that if we are exhaustive with the list, some people might end up missing out and it might not being updated. However, it is worthwhile if there are specific groups.

I have a question for the CLM representatives. Could they give us examples of a scenario where people who are on HAP may end up becoming disentitled under the general scheme? It is worthwhile to have those real-life examples. I ask about, for example, when the main applicant meets the habitual residency requirement but has a child who ages out and comes back but does not meet the reckonable residency requirement. I am interested in those real-life examples.

I ask about EU law, the free movement of workers and the free movement people who are exercising their rights generally. Where might this impact on family members who are coming over with people? Could the witnesses please give a real-life example of that?

I will pass it over and I might come back in if I have more questions.