The Taoiseach appears to have ruled out increasing the rent supplement to help some families avoid homelessness.

The payment will be reviewed next month but Enda Kenny told the Dáil this afternoon that increasing the payment may not help the situation, and might only lead to further inflation in the cost of renting a home.

Leaders' Questions in the Dáil was been dominated by homelessness, following the death of a homeless man on nearby Molesworth Street yesterday.

The Taoiseach said there is no quick fix to tackling the issue: “A blanket raising of the rent supplement doesn’t solve the problem. It will for some people, but for others it’s just going to move them up into the next category of likely to become homeless themselves."

Mr Kenny also said not everyone can be saved from homelessness. “I know from experience it is exceptionally difficult to get some of the people who are homeless to want to move to accommodation, because of the nature of the problems they have, and you can’t deny that reality," he said.

Meanwhile, the turning on of the Oireachtas Christmas Tree lights, scheduled for this evening has been postponed.

The decision was taken by the Ceann Comhairle, who felt it would be inappropriate in light of the death of Jonathan Corrie on Molesworth Street yesterday.