The site of this past weekend's Electric Picnic festival in Stradbally will now be used to house close to a thousand Ukrainian refugees.

They will be housed in tents, despite November's declaration from the Minister for Children and Integration that tents would no longer be used to house refugees. Tents have been used similarly at the Cormanston army camp in Co Meath, as the search continues for more permanent accommodation as the refugees will only be staying at the site for six weeks.

The Department of Integration explained in a statement, "The accommodation at the site is for very short-term use and efforts will be made to secure short-term accommodation, from the existing departmental portfolio, for those who will be placed there."

The annual festival, which drew over 70,000 people across three days, will see a quick turnaround for the refugees. They will begin to arrive on 5 September, only two days after the last show ended.

As of June, almost 85,000 Ukrainian refugees arrived in Ireland since the beginning of the Russian invasion in early 2022. More than 10,000 people have arrived in Ireland since May, averaging about 650 a week. Despite an additional 7,000 beds being allocated for the Ukrainian asylum seekers, the Irish government admits to a "significant shortfall" in accommodation for the refugees.