New arrivals to Ireland fleeing war in Ukraine and asylum seekers from other countries have been staying at Dublin Airport, due to a shortage of State-provided accommodation.
Around 250 people were staying at the old terminal building at the airport last night - of whom 150 were women and children fleeing their home in Ukraine.
The Government said 160 people were transferred out of Dublin Airport to the facility in Citywest today.
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Around 41,000 people have come here fleeing the war in Ukraine, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said, and about 30,000 have been offered accommodation.
Mr Martin also said there had been unprecedented numbers of people coming to Ireland from other countries seeking protection this year.
The Government said Ukrainian refugees are not being turned away from Ireland due to current pressures.
The Taoiseach met ministers today to discuss the shortage of accommodation for Ukrainians and others seeking protection in Ireland.
A Government statement after that meeting said that "ensuring the security, health and safety of people who are fleeing Ukraine has been, and remains, a top priority for the Government" and that is why it was deemed necessary "to delay the transfer of new arrivals to the Citywest Transit Hub".
"This decision has resulted in new arrivals spending some time in the Old Terminal Building at Dublin Airport, but the intention is that this time would be kept to a minimum and that the most vulnerable are prioritised for transfer," the statement said.
"Over 160 people have been transferred out of Dublin Airport over the course of today."
"Additional accommodation options for the immediate term have been identified and these will be brought into operation over the coming days."
Accommodation at Gormanston Camp will open on Monday to accommodate Ukrainians who are coming to Ireland as they flee the Russian invasion. Initially, 150-200 Ukrainian refugees will be accommodated at the camp. 320 people will be accommodated thereafter.
With the CityWest Transit Hub facility full, the Department of Children last night said that anyone arriving into the country would have to stay in Dublin Airport if they did not have somewhere to stay.
It said that the Government was working intensively to put alternative arrangements in place with immediate effect.
The operator of Dublin Airport said it had made the Old Central Terminal Building available to the Department of Children to help them facilitate the arrival of Ukrainian nationals into Ireland.
Ukrainians 'don't have other options'
A volunteer group that helps Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion said some of the new arrivals had to sleep on a bare floor at Dublin Airport.
Margarita Kalinichenko, who volunteers with the Ukrainian Action Group, said newly arriving Ukrainians "are very grateful for the place to be quiet at the moment, and they're not demanding or something. They're very grateful for what they have. But they slept on the bare floor yesterday."
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, she said there is a similar situation with refugees in Poland and Germany and people coming from Ukraine have been warned about the lack of accommodation.
"They have all the options in front of them and they need to decide where is it better to go."
Ms Kalinichenko said people do want to stay in Ukraine, but as the war continues they just want to find some safe place.
"People who really are in need, who don't have a place to stay, who don't have any other options, they will come anyway, unless of course it will be closed by the Irish Government."
She said most of those seeking refuge are women and children, but there are situations where some men are permitted to leave Ukraine and some of those may be among the arrivals here.
CEO of the Irish Refugee Council Nick Henderson said Ireland needs a cross-government approach to handle the influx of refugees, and he called on the Department of Housing to support the Department of Children.
Mr Henderson said this was a "very challenging and exceptional" moment and the ongoing instability is likely to continue for some time.
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One, he said the IRC had a "deep concern" that Ireland cannot accommodate people, but the situation could be managed with the right policy and procedure.
He said it was necessary to appoint a refugee response director to take action.
The Minister for Children said Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilians may be behind an increase in the number of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland in June and July.
Roderic O'Gorman also said "changes in the UK" have had a "significant impact" on the numbers seeking international protection here.
He told the Dáil that his department is working to find emergency accommodation for those who are currently in Dublin Airport, and also to reduce the numbers in Citywest.
Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore criticised the minister's response as one that could have been given "five months ago".
"People who have offered own-door accommodation five months ago still have that accommodation sitting empty, and that is unacceptable," she said.
Minister O'Gorman said there are over 2,000 Ukrainians in pledged accommodation and that number is rising, but he accepted that it "is not growing fast enough" and is something that will be addressed at today's meeting.
Minister of State, Anne Rabbitte, Fianna Fáil TD for Galway East has told RTÉ's Drivetime programme that Gormanston will be used in the coming days for those coming from the airport but as soon as possible, even within a week, other accommodation will come on stream to house refugees.
She said that properties were assigned to local authorities, and they found 20% of properties to be suitable, but some local authorities are working quickly while others are struggling.
She said that the crisis is an evolving situation and Ireland is under pressure and the Government at are all times trying to meet the demands of the people arriving here from Ukraine, which is why Government leaders are meeting to be agile in their approach and expand to meet the needs of those coming.
She said that the needs fluctuate, with an average intake of approximately 195 people a day, but it was down to as low as seven and it depends on the attacks and how the war is progressing.
Minister Rabbitte said that people being denied the basics like water is not good enough but she could not say how that happened.
"We are responding to the crisis, working within other departments to see about availability of other properties.. every Department is responding as quickly as possible," she said.
Reporting: Ailbhe Conneely, Mícheal Lehane, Colman O'Sullivan and Helen Donohue
