Bailieborough refugees sent to Roscommon

Twenty-one Ukrainian refugees have been removed from the Bailie Hotel following its sale last week. The new owner is set to refurbish the bedrooms.

The group packed up their belongings before being separated and relocated to different areas throughout Ireland.

A spokesperson for The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth confirmed the relocation of refugees to the Celt.

“The Department can confirm that 21 Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection (BOTPs) were transferred from the Bailie Hotel, Cavan, on the 17th of May as the hotel was sold. Five remained in Cavan while 16 were transferred to Roscommon. It is best practice not to share the exact address for BOTPs.”

Local councillor Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú) feels not enough was done by the authorities to source accommodation locally.

Disappointed by the relocation of refugees, she stated: “The government’s management of the refugee situation leaves a lot to be desired. Initially the main concern locally was whether the Bailie Hotel would be able to remain open to the public.

“I understand only five of the refugees have since been housed locally and that 16 have now been moved to Roscommon. This is most disappointing, after how well the integration has worked here.

“It is sad that these families who have fled war and have settled in Bailieborough and integrated well into the community are now off to Roscommon where the whole complex integration process will have to be started again.

“I understand from speaking to one of the hosts that they decided to put up refugees after receiving a leaflet in their letterbox. I got no leaflet, and nobody informed me of any difficulty in terms of finding accommodation or host families - all elected representatives should have been informed of the difficulty, and we would have done what we could to help,” she said.