Factsheet - Accommodation and Living Conditions
The Traveller accommodation crisis means that nearly 1,000 Traveller
families still live on the roadside in appalling conditions without
access to water, sanitation and electricity. Many other Travellers live
in official accommodation that is poorly serviced and maintained and
often situated in unhealthy or dangerous locations.
This has a direct negative effect on Traveller quality of life and how
Travellers can access healthcare, education, social welfare and other
services.
Much of the thinking behind the provision of Traveller accommodation, particularly at local level, continues to be based on assimilationist approaches. This approach wrongly identifies the existence of Travellers as the problem and sees the settlement and absorption of Travellers as the solution.
In 1995, the Task Force Report on Travellers, recommended that 3,100
units of accommodation be provided for Travellers by the year 2000. It
recommended 2,000 units of Traveller specific accommodation be provided
and 900 standard and group housing. To date 251 units of Traveller
specific accommodation has been built while 757 houses have been
provided. This would indicate that an assimilationist approach prevails
and 'settling' Travellers in houses remains a priority for local
authorities. The lack of provision is compounded by prejudiced
objections to Traveller accommodation by settled residents.
Making Nomadism into a Crime
In 2002, the Government enacted the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act which made trespass, previously a civil offence, into a criminal offence. Currently, camping on private or public land is punishable by one month in jail, a 3,000 euro fine and the confiscation of property.
This means that Travellers living on the roadside - awaiting accommodation and with nowhere else to go - are crimnalised. This is a direct attack on the nomadic part of Traveller culture and punishes Travellers for the Government's failure to provide Traveller permanent and transient halting sites. In answer to a Dail Question, the Government stated in 2002-2003, 88 evictions of Travellers took place under this legislation. In 2003, this law went to judicial review and may also be in contravention of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The 1998 Traveller Acccommodation Act pobliged local authorities to produce 5 year plans for delivering Traveller accommodation. However, the absence of sanctions for failing to implement these plans has meant there has been little progress. A review of this Act is taking place in 2004 and as part of this review Pavee Point recommends the Government set up an independent Traveller Acccommodation Agency.
For Travellers to be accommodated successfully, key features of Traveller culture must be respected:
