Many families who accept the Housing Assistant Payment (HAP) scheme are unlikely to secure a permanent home, according to Fianna Fail.

Spokesperson on Housing Barry Cowen TD said it is a "fundamental flaw" in the scheme which needs to be reformed.

Deputy Cowen said: "This is a fundamental flaw in the scheme as it forces families to accept temporary rental accommodation while forgoing being moved to a permanent home.

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"I firmly believe that there is no good reason for HAP recipients to be removed from the social housing waiting list. The current design of HAP is discouraging families in need of a home from using the scheme. It seems the main reason for designing the scheme in this manner was to make the housing list statistics appear less severe.

"I also believe that the issuing of confidential information regarding people who are offered HAP is a worrying development which must be investigated. It's simply unacceptable to leak such confidential information for political gain."

(CD/MH)