Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
A NEW BILL is proposing that incapacitant sprays – pepper spray – be allowed in Irish prisons.
As someone who has spent significant time working on the policy areas of criminal justice and penal reform, I have significant concerns about that proposal, specifically in relation to their use in interactions between prison officers and those in the care of the Irish Prison Service.
Incapacitant sprays are chemical irritants designed to cause pain and inflammation in contaminated skin and tissue, typically in the facial area and respiratory tract.
Studies demonstrate that the use of chemical irritants can cause severe injury, permanent disabilities, and, in rare cases, even death.
Ireland is one of a handful of European countries where prison officers are not equipped with incapacitant sprays or other weapons, relying instead on their capacity to manage and de-escalate conflict without the use of force or violence.
Last week, the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Home Affairs, and Migration undertook pre-legislative scrutiny of the Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025.
Like other omnibus bills, this bill would introduce legislative proposals across several areas. When bills propose to make numerous changes across different areas of the statute book simultaneously, there is an increased likelihood that concerning changes in law receive little to no attention.
Within the Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025, specifically, the proposed introduction of incapacitant sprays in Irish prisons is one such change.
While I assume the intention of introducing incapacitant sprays is to promote greater safety in our prisons, it is clear from examining findings from other jurisdictions that their introduction does not positively impact the levels of violence in prisons, and, in fact, negatively impacts prison officer and prisoner relations, destabilising relationships that rely on trust and harmony.
The most recent data on the rates of violent incidents and assaults released by the Irish Prison Service (IPS) highlights notable fluctuations during 2023 and 2024.
The data demonstrates that there has been a reported 3% decrease in direct physical assaults by prisoners on prison staff, while aggressive and threatening incidents have fallen by 8%. Physical interventions within prisons, where staff must intervene physically, are down by 25%.
These figures suggest some improvement in the safety of the prison environment for prison staff.
In contrast, the Prison Officers Association (POA) have separately stated that attacks on prison officers increased by 32% in the last year.
This significant discrepancy in reporting requires clarification and further analysis to understand the trends in assaults against staff accurately.
Turning to prisoner-on-prisoner violence, there has been a concerning 31% increase in direct physical assaults by prisoners on other prisoners over the same period, a significant rise.
Upon closer examination of the data, it becomes evident that these trends are firmly established in Irish prisons. Figures released by the IPS in 2023 indicated a 14% decrease in physical assaults by prisoners on staff between 2022 and 2023, but conversely, a significant rise in prisoner-on-prisoner assaults was observed, with an increase of 74%.
Despite improvements in the rates of assaults on staff by prisoners, the significant escalation in prisoner-on-prisoner violence requires further analysis and targeted responses aimed at promoting greater safety for all parties in the prison environment, something that I do not believe can be achieved through the lawful use of violent means.
The Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) have highlighted that prisoner-on-prisoner assaults are a pressing issue in Irish prisons, and in their submission on the bill to the joint Committee, they rightly acknowledged the skills of prison officers in de-escalating these incidents.
I do not believe that the introduction of incapacitant sprays is likely to assist prison officers in reversing the concerning trends in prisoner-on-prisoner violence cited above.
In fact, if we look across to the UK, studies have demonstrated the disproportionate use of PAVA (a type of incapacitant spray) against minority communities in prisons in the UK, including Black, Muslim, and disabled prisoners, which has the effect of normalising the use of violence against particular groups within the prison environment.
The Future Prison Capacity Working Group Report, published in July, has highlighted compromised safety and security in Irish prisons, primarily as a result of chronic overcrowding.
As of 23 June 2025, the Irish prison system was operating at 117% capacity, with 421 people sleeping on mattresses on the floor, significantly in contravention of both the IPS and Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture’s (CPT) safe standards and best practice.
Looking again to the UK, research undertaken in England and Wales by the Ministry of Justice has highlighted the link between overcrowding and a rise in prisoner-on-prisoner assaults, with prisoners in overcrowded cells being 19% more likely to be involved in an assault.
The 31% increase in prisoner-on-prisoner assaults in Ireland in 2024 further underscores the correlation between overcrowding and rising violence in the Irish context.
How incapacitant sprays will positively interrupt this trend is entirely unclear.
Indeed, even the Department of Justice in its own policy paper acknowledges the fact that international evidence demonstrates that the introduction of incapacitant sprays in custodial settings is likely to cause an increase in the number of ‘use of force’ events in Irish prisons.
So why are we pursuing it as a strategy through which to reduce violence in our prisons? Why doesn’t the Department further investigate the positive correlation between overcrowding and violence in Irish prisons, and instead consider the suite of other, non-violent measures that can be taken to address this issue, some of which have already been called for by the IPS?
The Justice Committee and Government must consider how the introduction of incapacitant sprays may alter the dynamic between officers and prisoners.
What evidence has the Department relied on in informing the decision to introduce incapacitant sprays in Irish prisons? Is their introduction likely to create a more adversarial relationship that will instead increase tensions rather than reduce them? What other steps could the Department of Justice and the IPS take to promote safety in our prisons without introducing dangerous chemical irritants?
While exploring other options, it is necessary to consider areas such as safety assumptions. The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) has reported deteriorating safety in male prisons and rising allegations of staff misconduct in Ireland.
The proposed introduction of incapacitant sprays appears to rely on an assumption of safety, possibly reflecting a belief that officers will feel safer, or that prisoners will ultimately feel better protected when incapacitant sprays are available to prison officers.
Prison tends to negatively impact the health and well-being of prisoners, especially when the environment is as chronically overcrowded as Irish prisons are at the moment; adding chemical irritants into the mix is a cause for grave concern.
Given that chemical irritants can lead to severe health consequences, including death, it is essential to consider the vulnerability of specific individuals to these chemicals, especially in enclosed spaces.
What safeguards will be implemented to protect vulnerable individuals, particularly those with respiratory health concerns? How will these risks be mitigated in our prisons, and who will be responsible for safeguarding and oversight?
It is paramount that the proposed use of incapacitant sprays is assessed under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT).
There is also a conversation to be had about the use of sprays on marginalised and minority groups.
We must look to those with physical or psychological disabilities, and those who are neurodiverse, for guidance, and safeguard against the biased application of incapacitant sprays against racial, religious and ethnic minorities.
What rights-based assessments have been carried out by the Department of Justice to explore all the unintended consequences of the use of incapacitant sprays in the custodial environment versus any potential benefits?
While discussions on this issue are likely to be about the merits or otherwise of incapacitant sprays in custodial settings, the elephant in the room is the significant overcrowding in Irish prisons and the strain this puts on the prison community as a whole.
We can all agree that the reduction in violence is a positive aim, but you cannot reduce violence through inherently violent means. That’s the real conversation that we need to be having.
Lynn Ruane is an independent senator.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say