Comments about tents on the streets of Dublin by the CEO of the City Council have been labelled 'bewildering and embarrassing' by a homeless charity.
It's after Owen Keegan said people should be prevented from living in tents when there is accommodation is available.
He also criticised other agencies for providing tents and food to the homeless on the streets.
He was speaking after Irish Olympian Jack Woolley was injured in a 'random attack' in the city over the weekend, and a boardwalk in the city centre was branded a 'complete no-go area'.
Chairman of Inner City Helping Homeless (ICHH), David Hall, says they can't be blamed for instances of anti-social behaviour.
"I think it's one of slight bewilderment and slight embarrassment for Mr Keegan.
"It's a question he wasn't even asked, and went off to try and attribute some blame to people living in tents from a failed system of housing and homeless in Dublin City Council versus the assault on an Olympian.
David Hall is seen at the Four Courts in Dublin in this 2016 file photo. Picture by: RollingNews.ie"Anybody looking at social media, looking at the news, in the last number of months all over Dublin city and county - and nationally - will see many instances recorded of violent behaviour and misconduct by many people, none of whom lived in a tent".
And he says Mr Keegan's comments around homeless services amount to self-criticism.
"I don't know many people who try and sort of criticise themselves, which is what Mr Keegan has done.
"These are people who chose not to stay in services provided by the council, provided by Mr Keegan, because as many charities and organisations... have been relentlessly stating this and advocating on behalf of those who are a very unfortunate cohort of people who don't want to stay in these emergency beds because of drug use, because of property being stolen and harm.
"You wouldn't go and stay in a hotel, and repeat a stay in a hotel, where you had open drug use beside you, where you had your property and stuff stolen and potentially was assaulted.
"You simply wouldn't return to that place".
