I have three specific questions for the Minister relating to people who are experiencing homelessness, the first of which is about safeguarding procedures. Recently it was reported that An Garda Síochána had detailed knowledge of credible allegations of sexual assault against vulnerable people experiencing homelessness. Despite having detailed knowledge of credible allegations since May, An Garda Síochána failed to pass on this information in a timely manner to Inner City Helping Homeless, ICHH, where the alleged perpetrator worked, thus placing vulnerable people at continued risk. Where there are credible allegations, action must be taken to protect people who are vulnerable. In other jurisdictions the police inform relevant organisations of allegations if they are deemed to be credible so that measures can be taken to protect people who are at risk. Will the Government introduce legislation to require An Garda Síochána, when it has knowledge of credible allegations of sexual assault, to pass this information on to relevant organisations where alleged perpetrators are working or volunteering?

Second, the latest figures show that the number of children and families living in emergency accommodation is increasing. Two children are becoming homeless every day and more than 8,0000 people are living in emergency accommodation. Focus Ireland has called for the introduction of annual targets for reducing homelessness. It issued this call yesterday when it reported that it had helped a record number of people at risk of entering homelessness last year. We know from the national development plan, NDP, that this Government does not like targets, budgets or deadlines. Will the Minister listen to Focus Ireland on this issue? Will he introduce annual targets for reducing homelessness and, if so, when will he publish them?

My final question is about standards in emergency accommodation funded by the State but run by private, for-profit companies. It is completely unacceptable that in emergency accommodation that is publicly funded but run to make a profit there are no checks to ensure staff are trained, properly Garda vetted and proper safeguarding procedures are in place. There have been allegations of bullying, dehumanising rules and a lack of Garda vetting of staff in some of these hostels. As the Minister is aware, there is currently a dual process in place whereby accommodation run by not-for-profit organisations is inspected to ensure compliance with national quality standards, while emergency accommodation run by companies and individuals for profit are not inspected to determine if they meet these standards. Will the Government apply the same standards, the national quality standards, to all providers of services for people who are experiencing homelessness? Will the Minister end the practice of lower and sub-minimum standards for private operators?

I thank Deputy O'Callaghan for his questions. Recent controversies involving a particular homelessness charity in Dublin have highlighted the importance of protecting vulnerable homeless people. We must keep that to the forefront of everything we do. I have previously raised concerns about the number of ad hoc groups of people who feel they may be doing good but who are not properly trained in the sector, including the charity mentioned by Deputy O'Callaghan. A Garda investigation is still ongoing into very serious allegations of sexual abuse of vulnerable people, which is abhorrent. We must make sure that standards, particularly around Garda vetting, are in place for all charities.

The body the Deputy mentioned operated outside the scope of the main homeless services, which are provided by local authorities and voluntary NGOs. I chair the homeless task force in my Department with the main homeless NGOs, those which are fully accredited, have full charitable status and are very careful and considered in ensuring their staff go through the proper training and are properly vetted. Where there are gaps, that needs to be addressed very seriously.

Issues have also been raised around the role of the Charities Regulator. Let us be frank. There are charities in this space that crop up nearly overnight. They may be given charitable status but may not have qualified people working in the sector. That is something that concerns me. I have seen it while on outreach with other groups around this city. They feel they are doing good but in many instances are not properly trained to provide the outreach that other services provide. Most important, we want to make sure that people are given a permanent home to live in and that those who need emergency accommodation are provided with accommodation that is safe and has the wrap-around supports we need.

I have seen Focus Ireland's call for annual targets. I, on behalf of the Government, have committed, under the Lisbon declaration, to eradicating homelessness by 2030. Focus Ireland and many other organisations in this sector have welcomed that. We have seen a substantial year-on-year decrease in homelessness. Over the past two months, we have seen some slight increases and we need to watch that. I have convened a meeting of my task force tomorrow. If we take the peak of homelessness in July 2018, child and family homelessness has declined by about 50% since. Progress is being made, particularly on prevention of homelessness, because the Government provided unprecedented resources, €218 million in homeless service supports, last year. In the budget next week, we will continue to support homeless services. There is a big focus on the provision of permanent homes for people. That is what we have done in our Housing for All plan as well.

I asked the Minister three specific questions. He did not answer any of them so I will put them to him again. Specifically, will the Government introduce legislation to require An Garda Síochána, when it has knowledge of credible allegations of sexual assault, to pass this information on to relevant organisations where alleged perpetrators are working or volunteering? I did not ask about Garda vetting in respect of that or anything else.

Will the Government introduce annual targets to reduce homelessness? The 2030 target is welcome but if there are not annual targets, how are we to know if we are making progress towards the 2030 target?

Will the Minister give a commitment that the national quality standards will be applied to all providers of emergency accommodation and that private, for-profit providers will no longer be exempted? I would be grateful if the Minister could actually answer those three questions.

On targets, I will assess what Focus Ireland is looking for. We have made a very significant step forward in committing to eradicating homelessness by 2030. That is significant and, in fairness to the Deputy, I think he recognises that.

In relation to private emergency accommodation, I am bringing forward new standards in coming weeks. These providers have operated under a type of standards in parallel with the national quality standards framework. New standards will be brought forward as well. The Deputy should recognise that the wrap-around services and supports in private emergency accommodation have greatly improved over the past 12 months. He has been told that directly in his interaction with those services and it needs to be acknowledged.

On Garda vetting of people who operate in emergency services, particularly around what An Garda Síochána does with complaints it receives, as housing Minister, I will not stretch into what An Garda Síochána does. However, we need to look very seriously at what happened in the recent controversies with the individual in question in Inner City Helping Homeless, learn lessons from that and listen to what people were saying at the time. That applies to all parties and housing spokespersons.

We will shortly bring forward the revised standards. I intend to do so in this session. I know the Deputy has an interest in this matter. We will get to discuss the standards in the joint committee and the House.