Since 2008 funding for Traveller Accommodation has been cut from €40 million to €4.3 million in 2015, Sinn Féin has confirmed.

The party is calling on the government to outline how and when it intends to restore traveller accommodation funding to pre-2008 levels.

Spokesperson on Housing Eoin Ó Broin said: "A lot of traveller families live in overcrowded and inadequate living conditions across the state. A fact which is highlighted by the fact that in the report separation distances between Traveller accommodation units was identified as an issue of concern in 57% of the sites evaluated.

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"The provision of suitable Traveller accommodation with the required facilities is a key responsibility for local authorities under the Government's Traveller Accommodation Programmes. However, successive years of savage cuts to traveller accommodation budgets by central government have not made this easy to implement."

(CD)