Local Development Companies Network (LDCN) is concerned about Government plans to withdraw state-provided accommodation currently being provided to around 16,000 people from Ukraine, while the conflict continues in their home country. This move would impact directly on Ukrainian families, and on the communities that they now call home.
LDCN is the national representative body for Local Development Companies (LDCs) in Ireland. It is a member of the Ukraine Civil Society Forum, a coalition of 122 organisations in Ireland supporting those displaced by war in Ukraine. Recent announcements by Government have created an unnecessary level of anxiety for an already traumatised section of our communities. They deserve to feel safe and to be informed.
Speaking today, Máirín Ó Cuireáin, CEO of Local Development Companies Network, said:
“Local Development Companies have been leading out on the integration of Ukrainian refugees into Irish society since the war in Ukraine broke out. Communities up and down the country have demonstrated huge goodwill, solidarity and friendship to our new neighbours. This recent announcement to withdraw accommodation support will create unnecessary instability and compromises the local integration and inclusion efforts of our teams. We ask that families and individuals be supported to remain where they have made connections, through work, school, education and in the community.”
Terry Hyland, Chair of the LDCN Social Inclusion Oversight Forum and CEO of Cavan County Local Development, added:
“Ukrainian refugees are members of our local communities, as volunteers, as friends, and are employed locally. For example, there are 1,178 Ukrainian refugees providing over one million hours in support to local community and voluntary groups through the Tús programme this year. The withdrawal of accommodation will force a large number of these individuals and families to move elsewhere, which will be a significant loss to the communities in which they have lived for up to four years. These 1,178 Ukrainians are an integral part of LDC teams across the country delivering vital supports and programmes both to local Irish communities and to people seeking protection and safety from conflict.”
Máirín Ó Cuireáin, CEO, LDCN, concluded:
“We urgently call for engagement with the relevant civil society structures whose purpose is to provide national coordination of civil society and community responses, connecting into the State’s emergency response structures. Responses must be humane; any repatriation scheme must be voluntary and run parallel to the continued provision of supports for people who continue to experience trauma due to war and conflict. We call for clarity on how Ukrainian refugees will avoid homelessness and a plan for how statutory agencies will respond to the consequences.
Local Development Companies provide local solutions to local problems, often caused by systemic issues that can only be addressed at a national level. Through the Local Development Companies Network we are a strong representative voice for all Local Development Companies and the communities they serve, and we stand in solidarity with all who are fleeing war and persecution.”