Sinn Féin is calling for more to be done for homeless families.

Housing spokesperson Dessie Ellis said that over the Christmas period, the number of people being placed in emergency accommodation increased considerably.

Deputy Ellis said: "This is due to an increase across the year of the amount of people experiencing homelessness, but also thankfully an increase in the number of places available for people in need.

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"I welcome this improvement in provision but from everyone in the sector working with people experiencing homelessness it is clear that not enough has been provided to adequately house families.

"Single people have historically been failed by the housing system, but their needs can sometimes be more easy to meet than the needs of families with small children. The number of families experiencing homelessness has risen dramatically over the last few years as has the number of children in emergency accommodation.

"More must be done to provide the kind of emergency accommodation which is suitable for families with small children. In the long term this must be more stable than the use of hotels rooms which has become commonplace in Dublin city."

(CD/JP)