Dept of Justice renews IPAS contract with Louth hotel for another year
The Department of Justice has agreed a renewed contract with the providers at D Hotel, Drogheda, for it to continue to be used as an IPAS centre for a further 12 months
Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Jim O’Callaghan TD, has confirmed that the Department of Justice has agreed a renewed contract with the providers at D Hotel, Drogheda, for the hotel to continue to be an IPAS centre for a further 12 months.
Minister O’Callaghan confirmed the contract renewal today, in response to a parliamentary question from Louth TD, Labour’s Ged Nash.
Deputy Nash asked the Minister, to provide details on the precise purpose for which the hotel will now be used by IPAS, under the terms of the recent contract extension, including: when the contract was signed; the duration of the contract; the value of the contract; the end date for that contract; and the number of people housed at the IPAS Centre each month since April 2024 to date.
He also asked if the extension of the contract for the hotel to continue to be an IPAS centre for a further 12 months will be the final extension of this contract, and if the hotel will return to general public use after the end date of that extension.
Replying to Deputy Nash, Minister O’Callaghan said: “The Department has agreed a renewed contract with the providers at D Hotel, Drogheda, for a period of one year.
“The capacity at the centre will remain the same at 500 people. All arrangements on the site in terms of staffing and services will remain the same. The contract was confirmed on March 30, 2026.”
The Minister continued: “This centre continues to function as a dispersal centre for the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS), with families in residence for a short period of time before transfer to an alternative centre.
“The Departments treats details of individual contracts as confidential and commercially sensitive, but published all payments to providers over €20,000 at quarterly intervals.
“The Department will remain in contact with all State support services in the area so that they can continue to provide supports needed to assist people, including Louth County Council, health, education, transport services and other State agencies.
“Since 2024, once an IPAS accommodation centre is in operation, IPAS has not published details of the specific locations, resident profile, and occupancy of our individual accommodation centres. This is to preserve the privacy, safety and wellbeing of residents and staff.
“The provision of accommodation for people seeking international protection is demand-led and each premises is considered on a case-by-case basis to decide if it will be renewed.
“At potential renewal stage, consideration will be given to the current and projected demand for accommodation, the provider's performance under contract, and compliance with standards and legal obligations.
“Where a contract or a property is providing services within its obligations and can be seen as delivering value for State funds, it is important to maintain our ability to meet need across the system.
“While numbers of people applying for international protection have reduced, there have been approximately 1000 applications per month since early 2026, and accommodation remains an essential need.”
Minister O’Callaghan added: “The Department is working to increase the amount of State-owned international protection accommodation and creating a more stable and sustainable accommodation system.
“As developing these more sustainable state-owned accommodation system options under this strategy will take time, the commissioning of emergency commercial accommodation will continue to be a feature in the short to medium term.”