Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris has called on his Cabinet colleague Roderic O'Gorman to quickly bring forward a plan to deal with refugee accommodation.
Mr Harris described the situation on Mount Street where male asylum seekers are sleeping in tents as an "awful situation", adding that it is "not good or acceptable position to be in".
Minister for Integration Roderic O'Gorman is currently working on a revised White Paper, which will outline plans for refugee accommodation in the short, medium and long term.
However, it is understood that it will not be brought to Cabinet for consideration for another few weeks. It was hoped it would have been completed by now.
Mr Harris told reporters in London, where he has traveled as part of St Patrick's Day events, that there was an "urgent need for the publication of the plan".
He added that Mr O'Gorman had been working "extremely hard" on the refugee accommodation shortage.
However, he also said that "we do need to start showing people that the Government's policy and plan isn't to, outside of an emergency scenario, seek to take community facilities".
He said the public needed to see the Government's longer-term strategy.
"Irish people have a lot of common sense, they knew there needed to be an emergency response but they are getting understandably a little frustrated that they haven't seen the response beyond the emergency," he said.
Mr Harris added that there needs to be an "interim solution" to the situation on Mount Street so that asylum seekers can be safe, with access to sanitation.
In a motion, to be debated in the Dáil next week, the Social Democrats is urging the Government to publish the revised white paper.
The party's spokesperson on integration, Jennifer Whitmore, said her party also wants the Government to expediate its plan to provide six State-run reception and integration centres.
The Social Democrats motion urges the Government to publish a recent audit of "IPAS and Ukrainian accommodation" capacity.
Latest figures show that 1,268 single male asylum seekers have not been provided with accommodation.
Ms Whitmore described tents outside the International Protection Office in Dublin City Centre as "shameful".
"The absence of the most basic facilities, such as toilets or running water, is contributing to a growing humanitarian and public health crisis, with many asylum seekers reported to be suffering from skin and respiratory conditions," she added.
The motion urges the Government to "adequately" resource the international protection system to ensure that applications can be processed in a "timely and efficient manner".
Ireland's response to displacement 'hasn't been sufficient' - Robinson
Chair of the Elders and former president of Ireland Mary Robinson has said Ireland's response to displacement "hasn't been sufficient".
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One, she said: "It hasn't been sufficient because we need to really think with more long view leadership which is what the Elders are very much promoting.
Ms Robinson said Ireland is a "rich country by world standards" despite it not always feeling so adding that "it is not really to our credit that we are seeing these tents in Mount Street at the moment".
"We should be able to do more and I'm sure we can do more, if we combined all the resources of the Government, but also the local authorities, any buildings that are vacant that would be appropriate and talk to people before a building is used to avoid the controversy that has arisen."
She said long view leadership is about resolving problems and not trying to manage them in an imperfect kind of way.
On migration, Ms Robinson said it is known that "both conflict and climate are increasing people on the move".
She said such people "can't help being on the move, they have to move"
Ms Robinson said there needs to be "legal ways of having access and then more control at borders so people aren't fearful".
Rodent poisoning laid near tents
Rodent poisoning has been laid just metres from asylum seekers who are living in the makeshift tented village outside the International Protection Office on Mount Street in Dublin.
Rodenticide - a pesticide that kills rodents - was spotted at two locations in the camp yesterday, beside where the International Protection applicants bed down.
A rubbish van came to the area yesterday and a mound of litter was cleared away beside the drain where men regularly urinate in. The drain remained partly blocked yesterday with litter.
One of the asylum seekers, a man in his early 30s from Nigeria, said: "You know most of the time, this place used to be littered, plenty of rubbish here. People normally piss here, urinate here, it is always difficult for us because we don't have option. It is okay like it is this morning, it is only smelling."
The Nigerian man arrived in Ireland 50 days ago. He emails the International Protection Accommodation Services regularly seeking an update as to when he might get a bed.
In response, IPAS emails him back saying: "IPAS deeply regrets the situation you are currently facing and understand how difficult it must be for you, especially if you have been without accommodation for a while.
"We are working tirelessly to source accommodation as quickly as possible for all IPs who require it.
"Please be assured that your contact details are in our system and an IPAS representative will contact you as soon as accommodation becomes available.
"In the meantime, we have a range of support available to you at the drop in centres listed below. You are entitled to a Daily Expense Allowance of €113.80 per week, as well as to pick up tents, sleeping bags and food at a number of locations around Dublin.
"Should you need medical assistance, we urge you to attend the drop-in centres with medical professionals, or make an appointment with the GPs listed in this email.
"We hope to get you into accommodation as soon as possible. An IPAS representative will be in touch as soon as suitable accommodation becomes available."
The man said the money he gets weekly allows him to stay for up to four nights a week in hostels, where bunkbeds in shared rooms cost around €25 a night Monday to Thursday before the price increases at weekend.
Other men just stay at the camp permanently.
In response to queries from RTÉ's Morning Ireland, a spokesperson for the Department of Integration said: "The department is urgently working on a solution which we hope will be put into operation as soon as possible. We are not in a position to comment any further due to security considerations.
"The current situation is unsatisfactory and every effort is being made by the department to resolve it."
In a statement, Dublin City Council said its Waste Management Services are at the site on a daily basis to remove waste and clear any debris. Refuse bags and litter pickers have also been distributed to allow the men collect rubbish and these are collected every day.
The council said it offered to remove accumulated waste from private car park behind the Civil Service/IPAS offices, but IPAS said it had made its own arrangements and the waste was removed on Wednesday.
The council also said it is "not the responsibility of Dublin City Council to provide temporary public toilets at this location".
Additional reporting: Kieran Dinneen
