Children's Minister confirms unaccompanied minors from Calais migrant camp are teenage boys

Ms Zappone is seeking Cabinet approval to implement a Dáil motion from last November to accept up to 200 unaccompanied minors.

The first group of 20 will be interviewed in France next week and are all boys aged 16 and 17.

Speaking on her way into the meeting she confirmed many will be housed in small residential settings.

She said: "Most of those we have accommodation ready for them and probably most of them will be in very small residential settings, as they are now.

"We have about 80 young people within our care setting, unaccompanied minors, many of whom are in residential settings."

Ms Zappone said around 40 children would initially be relocated from the migrant camp at a cost of €11.5 million in the first year.

The Minister said she would be raising the issue of financing the relocation with Finance Minister Michael Noonan at Cabinet.

"There is that will to do it and we will find a way," she said.

Officials are due to travel to France next week where she said they will assess around 20 young people and identify which ones wish to come to Ireland.

"They will be on their way within the next couple of weeks.

"My understanding is that from speaking to my officials and Tusla, all of them are boys and they are 16 and 17 years old.

"We have to really think about their needs and the experiences of boys becoming young men and fleeing conflict and terror without their families and that's what we are getting ready for," the minister said.