THE owner of the country’s largest hotel at Citywest received over €1.3million on average per week in 2024 for accommodating Ukrainians and International Protection applicants.
New figures show that the €68.27million paid out to Cape Wrath UC, which is owned by investment group Tetrarch Capital and runs the 764-bed Citywest hotel and convention centre in Saggart, Co Dublin.
The figure is a 27 per cent increase on the €53.7million paid out to the hotel firm in 2023.
That is according to new quarterly figures published by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth which show that the overall spend on accommodation for IP applicants and Ukrainians totalled €1.84billion for 2024.
The outlay equates to a daily average spend of €5million across 2024.
However, the overall spend in accommodating Ukrainians and IP applicants was down sharply on 2023.
The €1.84billion spent last year compared to €2.13billion in 2023 – a drop of €290million.
The biggest factor in the decrease was the 43 per cent or €648million reduction in the Ukrainian accommodation bill.
Last year it totalled €842million, compared to €1.49billion in 2023.
One of those to also benefit is Minister for State, Michael Healy Rae with his Kerry guesthouse Rosemount Guest House receiving €24,280 for the final quarter.
This brings to €1.22million the total Deputy Healy Rae’s Rosemount Guest House has received over two years and three months from the Department for accommodating Ukrainians.
The detailed figures show that the entity to receive the second highest amount in the fourth quarter for accommodating IP applicants and Ukrainians is IGO Emergency Management Services which received €12.46million and this followed €14.6million paid out to the firm in the third quarter.
MONEY FOR HOUSING APPLICANTS
The figures show that the operator of the Red Cow hotel operator, Guestford received €8.56million for the final quarter while Travelodge Hotels received €11million for the same three-month period.
Holiday Inn Dublin Airport received €8million for the three-month period.
TIFCO owns the Travelodge business here and TIFCO received €6.9m for housing IP applicants for the fourth quarter.
The figures also show that Brimwood UC, a company controlled by former Monaghan GAA football manager Seamus ‘Banty’ McEnaney, received €3.5million for the fourth quarter in addition to the €50.4million the company received in the prior seven quarters.
