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Prison overcrowding crisis has deepened further - POA

The Prison Officers Association has said the overcrowding crisis within Irish prisons has deepened even further this year.

Ireland • 04 Sep

€600,000 in welfare inadvertently paid to prisoners

More than €600,000 was inadvertently paid in welfare to people who were behind bars over the past two years.

Business • 29 Jul

Recruitment campaign to hire 300 prison officers begins

A recruitment campaign aimed at hiring 300 new prison officers in full-time positions is under way.

Ireland • 04 Jul

The Irish Penal Reform Trust warned that overcrowding has led to unacceptable, degrading and dehumanising conditions (Stock image)

Prison overcrowding 'extremely concerning', says IPRT

The prison population across Ireland exceeds 5,000 in a system with bed capacity for over 4,600, leaving the Irish Prison Service operating at 14% over capacity.

Crime • 24 Apr

The payments are made under the additional hours system, which was introduced around 20 years ago to replace a more costly overtime scheme for prison officers

€51m paid for additional hours to prison officers

There has been a sharp rise in the number of extra hours being worked by prison officers with nearly €51m in payments since the start of last year.

Business • 25 Nov 24

Staff at Castlerea Prison in Co Roscommon took an average of 24.38 days off sick per person at an estimated cost of around €1.1m last year

Irish Prison Service said cost of sick leave hit €11.15m

Prison officers had to take more than 52,000 sick days last year with staff at one jail taking an average of 24 days illness leave each.

Business • 20 Sep 24

Gardaí and the Irish Prison Service are investigating the incident

Prison officer suspended after alleged assault

An investigation is under way into an alleged assault on a prisoner by a prison officer last week.

Ireland • 17 Nov 23

WRC rejects whistleblower Prison Service office claim

The Workplace Relations Commission has sharply criticised the Department of Justice after the Prison Service's former HR director was changed from a witness to a "co-accused" during a work-related investigation, during which a potential protected disclosure was also downgraded.

Business • 10 Nov 23

Pay differences among Irish Prison Service directors are being examined at the Workplace Relations Commission

Big pay differentials between Prison Service directors

The State has given "three different stories" to explain how one director of the Irish Prison Service has ended up earning €37,000 a year more than its other directors, the Workplace Relations Commission has been told.

Business • 20 Sep 23

The Irish Prison Service intends to recruit up to 250 Recruit Prison Officers this year

550 new prison officers sought by end of 2024

A recruitment campaign for 550 new prison officers is under way.

Ireland • 24 Aug 23

An Irish Prison Service spokesperson said allowances were paid in accordance with government rules and were fully audited biannually.

Prison officers shared €15m in allowances last year

Prison officers shared almost €15 million in allowances last year including payments for working at high-security jails, for wearing their own clothes at work, running tuck shops, and for escorting prisoners to court.

Business • 07 Jun 23

The three directors say they ought to be paid the same as a fourth director

Prison Service directors take pay discrimination case

Three directors of the Irish Prison Service have accused it of ageist discrimination over being paid less than a fourth director at the state agency.

Business • 11 May 23

The Reach Out programme involved families learning to communicate within a prison environment

Prison pilot project strengthens family ties

The quality of interaction between prisoners, their partners and children strengthened following a pilot project that was carried out in Mountjoy.

Ireland • 14 Jun 22

Violence, overcrowding and pay are among the issues of concern

Over 220 new prison spaces by end of year, says McEntee

More than 220 new prison spaces will be opened by the end of the year to alleviate the worsening problem of overcrowding in the jails, according to the Minister for Justice Helen McEntee.

Ireland • 27 Apr 22

Some prisoners had no access to a shower for 14 days during quarantine

Prisoners disproportionately impacted by virus measures

The Inspector of Prisons has found that some of the measures introduced to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the prison system have had a disproportionate impact on inmates.

Ireland • 11 Jun 21

The report outlines methods taken by the National Infection Control Team and the National Quality Improvement team

Prison Service outlines plans to resume family visits

Plans for a phased recommencement of family visits to prisons have been outlined by the Irish Prison Service.

Coronavirus • 23 Jun 20

The Midlands Prison is the biggest in the country and it is currently housing 777 detainees

Irish prisons model best practice on handling Covid-19

The Irish Prison Service has submitted a paper to the World Health Organization as a model of best practice for keeping Covid-19 out of prisons.

Coronavirus • 10 Jun 20

Physical distancing 'is not possible' in many of the country's hostels

No room for prisoners in hostels, says homeless charity

Prisoners should not be released into the Irish hostel system, the Chief Executive of Inner City Helping Homeless, Councillor Anthony Flynn, has said.

Coronavirus • 31 Mar 20

Covid-19: Prison Service considers temporary release

The Prison Service is seeking to release more than 200 prisoners on a temporary basis to reduce the risk of the coronavirus spreading to the country's jails.

Coronavirus • 13 Mar 20

The Irish Prison Service appeared before the PAC today

PAC hears allegations about prison finances

The Department of Justice and the Irish Prison Service have been asked to investigate the whereabouts of three prison-owned vehicles and the finances of staff restaurants in prisons.

Politics • 18 Jan 19

The incident happened at Mountjoy Prison in June 2016

Court hears prisoner tried to cut officer's wrist

A man attempted to cut a prison officer's wrist with a blade moulded into a toothbrush while the officer was delivering toilet paper, a court has heard.

Courts • 14 Dec 18

The PAC is to examine the treatment of a whistleblower in the Irish Prison Service

PAC to probe Prison Service whistleblower treatment

The Public Accounts Committee is to examine the treatment of a whistleblower in the Irish Prison Service who, it is claimed, has had his salary cut off after making a protected disclosure.

Politics • 28 Jun 18

The WRC directed the Irish Prison Service to pay €30,000 to the whistleblower for penalisation

Prison Service whistleblower penalised after disclosure

A lawyer representing a whistleblower in the Irish Prison Service has called prison management to engage in mediation with his client following a finding that his client had been penalised as a result of making a protected disclosure.

News • 11 Mar 18

The Prison Officers' Association has welcomed the recruitment drive within the prison service

Prison service launches major recruitment drive

The Irish Prison Service is recruiting new officers after almost a decade of a hiring moratorium.

Ireland • 09 Feb 18

Solitary confinement requires prisoners to be alone for 22 hours a day

Prisoners request confinement due to 'fear of violence'

The Irish Penal Reform Trust has called for the abolition of solitary confinement in prisons.

Ireland • 02 Feb 18