Homelessness as bad as I've seen, says Housing Executive's Grainia Long

The chief executive of the Housing Executive has said homelessness in Northern Ireland is as bad as she has seen in her career.

Grainia Long said that 15,000 people had presented as homeless last year.

She also said the number needing temporarily lodgings from the Housing Executive went from 3,500 a year to more than 9,000 due to the pandemic.

Ms Long was speaking after concerns were raised about the number of people living rough in Belfast.

Some businesses have said there has been a rise in anti-social behaviour linked to drug addiction and homelessness.

Bob McCoubrey, who owns Mourne Seafood restaurant in Bank Street, said he is considering moving the business from its current location because of problems in the area.

The Dream Pods holiday apartments close to the restaurant are being used by the Housing Executive as temporary accommodation for homeless people.

Speaking on Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster programme, Ms Long said the Covid pandemic had a big impact on homelessness as existing hostels were forced to cut capacity and temporary arrangements like "sofa surfing" had broken down.

Grainia Long said the issue will take time to address

"There's a huge amount of frustration and I completely understand that.

"My job, my duty, is to those individuals who need accommodation and so we have to make the very difficult decision to place people in hotels.

"We only place people as a last resort in hotels, we don't want to do that."

She added: "In relation to Dream Pods, at the moment there are currently seven placements in that establishment and we do want to move that as close to zero as we can."

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She said multiple agencies were working together to try to address the issue.

"We need to recognise that this is as bad as I've seen it in my career," Ms Long added.

She said changes will take place "but it will unquestionably take time".

The owner of Mourne Seafood in Bank Street is considering moving the restaurant

Speaking to Good Morning Ulster on Tuesday, Mourne Seafood owner Mr McCoubrey said: "Our problem is the Housing Executive have taken over a hotel beside us and they've basically turned it into a hostel where people are arriving for two or three days and then moving on.

"They're being bailed directly out of the courts and it's just a chaotic management."

He added: "It's young men - they're aggressive, you can't talk to them, frequently they're completely out of their heads.

"We have drug dealers coming into the area, so it's a completely different issue at the moment."

Belfast City Council has said a planning enforcement case is open in relation to accommodation at Dream Pods.

"Council has engaged with the Northern Ireland Housing Executive after receiving a complaint about alleged drug use and anti-social behaviour at this site, and staff from our Safer Neighbourhood and Outreach teams were tasked to the area to offer support," a council statement said.

"A number of initiatives have been undertaken to support businesses and revitalise the wider Bank Square area, and we continue to work with statutory, community and voluntary partners to support them in tackling these complex issues and ending long-term homelessness."

A spokesperson for the Department for Communities said: "The minister is committed to addressing homelessness and will ensure housing services identify those at risk, provide support, and make any stay in temporary accommodation as short as possible.

"Responsibility for addressing anti-social behaviour in the area rests with the local council, the Housing Executive, the private landlord and police."