Conditions at Spring Lane halting site were raised in the Dáil last evening after it emerged that no action has been taken on foot of a report issued 18 months ago by the Ombudsman for Children, which found that living conditions there were deplorable.
The Ombudsman's report had ten recommendations, with 17 actions which needed to be taken.
Members of an Oireachtas Joint Committee visited the site last November and they spoke to the City Council about issues raised by members of the Traveller community in relation to conditions at Spring Lane.
Residents says the issues remain today with toilets still backing up and flooding during bad weather and the Council has yet to concrete a bay at the lowest point of the site.
Responding on behalf of the Housing Minister, Deputy Mary Butler says €6 million has been approved for Council Plans to develop a group housing scheme at Ellis's Yard and also for the re-development of Spring Lane and Ellis's Yard.
She also outlined how the Council has been in on ongoing engagement with the residents at Spring Lane to reach agreement on long term accommodation solutions for the families.
At the end of the debate the Ceann Comhairle Seán Ó Fearghaíl said he was amazed that intermediaries needed to be brought in to interpret what the requirements of the Traveller community in Cork are:
"I'm amazed that the esteemed officials in Cork, need to bring intermediaries in to interpret what the requirement of the traveller community are in Cork, are I suppose they all speak the same language so it should be possible for them without the aid of intermediaries to work out what's needed, particularly if there's 1.4 million in the coffers to do the work."
