Food and lack of access to a doctor among issues raised in complaints by asylum seekers

The organisation responsible for the provision of accommodation to those seeking asylum in Ireland said they had received 109 complaints in the first eight months of this year including the theft of personal belongings and being blocked from speaking with a doctor.

A log of complaints kept by the International Protection Accommodation Service (Ipas) from the summer reveals how one person complained that their child’s father was not being allowed to visit his daughter at a centre in Dublin.

In the midlands, one resident said they did not feel safe in their accommodation and that the “manager is entering his room”.

Another case at the same centre involved a person who claimed to have been “attacked with a knife” and unhappiness with how centre management dealt with the incident.

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In Co Clare, a complaint was logged about a roommate who was “aggressive [and] selling drugs” with the person asking if they could be moved away from them.

Bullying and an assault were also reported at a centre in Co Tipperary, according to the log of complaints released by the organisation.

In Dublin, one resident said their room had been “burglarised” while no staff or security were present with the loss of personal items.

There was also a complaint about access to a doctor at a centre in Monaghan while in Co Cork a resident also raised an issue with “children making noise”.

Other complaints included issues about the quality of food, the standard of rooms, and problems with roommates or centre managers.

Some residents raised issues after being asked to move centre. while complaints were logged about washing facilities.

Ipas said that 32 of the complaints related to issues between residents, 27 were about accommodation staff or management, and 16 concerned house rules or centre operations.

There were also 13 complaints about accommodation facilities, and six each about “culinary preferences” or which were categorised as miscellaneous.

Another five complaints related to issues with placement or requests for a transfer or move with a small number of other problems also raised.

Ipas said that in 23 cases, complaints related to more than one issue relating to accommodation or how a person was being treated.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Children and Equality said: “Ipas is always available to deal with any complaints from residents and residents are encouraged to engage with Ipas if they are unhappy with any aspect of their accommodation.”