The Department of Integration is now working with the Garda National Vetting Bureau to expedite appropriate vetting for all staff working at Dundrum House complex. Staff were informed on Wednesday afternoon that they had to be Garda vetted to be at the facility. Vetting is a legal requirement for staff who work directly with families with children who are applying for international protection and being provided with accommodation by the State.
Until the vetting is concluded the Department has brought existing appropriately vetted staff onto the site and these staff are working directly with international protection applicant families who have been accommodated at the site. It is understood that 78 people are now at Dundrum under the International Protection Process.
In a statement issued last evening the Department says all remaining staff will complete the vetting process without further delay. The statement says the closure of the bar and other facilities is temporary until the staff involved complete their vetting. The golf course can remain open to members and the site can be accessible to visitors according to the statement.
The Department acknowledges that the closures are a significant inconvenience and a concern for service providers, staff and the local community and accepts that such access was a significant topic in all meetings and discussions to date.
