Posted by A homeless Irish man was found dead in his tent on a Dublin street this week, in a tragedy that has intensified public outrage over the country’s escalating homelessness emergency.The death occurred just days after UFC star Conor McGregor joined volunteers from the Liberty Soup Run on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, personally handing out food, warm clothing, and supplies to people sleeping rough across the capital. McGregor, who spent hours on the streets with the charity, later described the scale of visible homelessness as a “state of emergency” and called on the public to support frontline organisations that are filling the gaps left by the State. McGregor’s latest outreach builds on his ongoing commitment to the cause. Last Christmas, he donated a generous €10,000 and provided an additional van to the Liberty Soup Run to strengthen their ability to reach and support those in need on the ground. The charity’s founder, Christopher O’Reilly, released a viral video in the wake of the latest death, in which he spoke emotionally about the deceased man, whom outreach teams had known and tried to help. In the widely shared clip, O’Reilly described the loss as “heartbreaking and entirely preventable,” highlighting how volunteers had interacted with the man only days earlier while criticising the stark contrast between the State’s failure to protect its own citizens and the billions spent elsewhere.
Gardaí confirmed the death is not being treated as suspicious, with hypothermia suspected pending postmortem results. The incident follows a pattern of similar tragedies throughout 2025, where a number of homeless individuals are known to have died while sleeping rough or in temporary accommodation. The timing of the death has sharpened criticism of government priorities. While Irish citizens continue to die on the streets, the State is on course to spend an estimated €3.4 billion in 2026 on accommodation, allowances, and services for international protection applicants – a figure that includes €1.6 billion in contingency funding for hotel and emergency centres. Over the past three years, expenditure on asylum-seeker accommodation alone has exceeded €7 billion, with thousands of hotel beds contracted for migrants while homeless Irish families and individuals remain in emergency hostels or on the streets. Social housing waiting lists now stand at record levels, with over 16,000 adults and children officially recorded as homeless at the end of 2025. Charities report the true figure is significantly higher, as many rough sleepers are not captured in official counts. Volunteers with Liberty Soup Run said “We were out with Conor last week giving people blankets and hot food. A few nights later, another person is dead in a tent. It’s a national scandal when billions are being spent housing and supporting people who arrive from abroad while our own are left to freeze.” The government defended, stating that Ireland has legal and international obligations to provide for those seeking protection and that separate budgets exist for domestic homelessness and social housing, also noting to increased capital investment in housing delivery, though critics argue the pace remains far too slow to meet demand, which has been exacerbated by record levels of inward migration. However, Mr. Martin stated in a recent interview that up to 80 percent of IPAs are “economic migrants”, conflicting with the government’s broader positioning. As temperatures drop further this winter, the death of yet another homeless Irish citizen – amplified by both Chris and McGregors viral clips has reignited calls for an immediate re-prioritisation of resources. For many, these events serve as a powerful indictment of a system that appears to place the needs of newcomers above those of its most vulnerable citizens.
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