CABINET WILL HEAR plans today to boost the number of prison spaces in Ireland in a bid to tackle significant overcrowding. 

Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan will tell Government that prisons in Ireland are currently operating at 115% capacity, with an 11% rise in the prison population in 12 months. 

There was a new record high set in mid-April of this year, with 5,394 individuals incarcerated in the State.

O’Callaghan will inform Cabinet of the risk this overcrowding creates for staff in the Irish Prison Service and for the people in custody, with a rise in assaults, increased pressure on services, threats to staff safety, and insufficient capacity to respond effectively to emergencies.

As part of plans to boost capacity, O’Callaghan will today inform the Government of plans to speed up the delivery of 960 prison spaces before 2030. 

Minister O’Callaghan has engaged with the Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers to allow for the acceleration of prison projects through an exemption from the initial approval gate of the infrastructure guidelines.

This will reduce delivery timelines by up to 18 months in some cases, according to the Department of Justice.

As part of the projects to be accelerated, the Old Cork Prison will be demolished and rebuilt by 2031. Currently, the prison is not in operation, but once reopened, it will have the capacity to hold 230 men and 100 women.

In addition to the plans to speed up the delivery of additional prison places, the minister has also already received Government approval to expand alternatives to custodial sentences, including expanding the use of Community Service Orders.

He also plans to introduce an electronic tagging pilot programme before the end of this year.