Housing Minister Simon Coveney has been slammed by Sinn Féin over not doing enough for homeless people throughout Ireland.

The party hit out at the Minister after figures from the Simon Community revealed a 32% rise in the number of people sleeping rough over the past year.

Sinn Féin spokesperson on Housing, Eoin Ó Broin TD, accused the Minister of not getting to grips with the situation.

He said: "Minister Coveney has repeatedly said that money is not an obstacle in tackling the homelessness crisis. Yes the latest figures from the Simon Community show a sharp rise in rough sleeping in the capital. All four Dublin Councils are under huge pressure to provide emergency accommodation on a night to night basis. We know that many people are being turned away from the Councils due to under provision of emergency accommodation.

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"The Government says it supports the housing-first approach as the primary response to homelessness. If this were the case in practice, rough sleeper numbers wouldn't be rising. There are 42,930 vacant properties across Dublin County, yet to date Government has done nothing to bring this stock into use.

"The decision to end the Ministerial Order, under which 50% of social housing allocated to homeless and other at risk households, has also had a negative impact. This decision must be reviewed."

(CD/LM)