Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 25 June 2025
148. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration on each occasion since January 2024 where a serious offender was granted bail or released early due to prison or detention centre overcrowding, the nature of the offence that was, the alternative arrangements that were made for public safety, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34907/25]
View answer150. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the assessment that has been made of the risk to public safety posed by the release or non-detention of individuals accused of involvement in organised crime due to the lack of remand spaces; and if he will publish this assessment. [34910/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 148 and 150 together.
As Minister for Justice, it is not open to me to comment or intervene in any way in relation to how particular court proceedings are conducted, or on the outcome of those proceedings. These are matters entirely for the presiding judge.
The Irish Prison Service must accept into custody all people committed to prison by the courts. Considerations relating to prison capacity are not a feature of Ireland’s legal framework in relation to bail and decisions on bail.
The law sets out that a court may refuse bail where there is a risk that the accused might abscond, interfere with witnesses, or otherwise obstruct the course of justice. In addition, under section 2 of the Bail Act 1997, as amended, bail may be refused in respect of a person charged with a serious offence where the court is satisfied that such refusal is reasonably considered necessary to prevent the commission of a serious offence by that person.
In exercising this jurisdiction, the court must consider certain mandatory criteria, including the nature and seriousness of the charge, the accused’s criminal record, and any previous offending while on bail. Where relevant, the court may also consider the extent to which the accused’s prior convictions suggest persistent serious offending, as well as the potential danger posed to individuals or the community by their release. In all cases, the court is required to give reasons for its decision to grant or refuse bail.
If bail is granted, the court has wide discretion to impose conditions that it considers necessary and proportionate. These may include conditions to protect the victim or their family, such as a curfew, a requirement to reside or remain at a specified address, restrictions on travel to certain areas, prohibition on contact with specified individuals (including victims).
Where an individual fails to comply with any bail conditions, the judge may issue a bench warrant, giving An Garda Síochána the power to arrest and bring the person before the court to answer all charges relating to the bail.
With regard to children, the Bail Supervision Scheme (BSS) offers courts an alternative option to remanding a young person to detention by providing them the possibility of granting bail with intensive supervision supports. The scheme currently operates at three sites, Dublin, Cork and Limerick. Plans to expand the scheme are currently under consideration. BSS reduces the need for remand in detention places. It provides an opportunity to focus on developing successful community resources designed to prevent children subject to BSS from engaging in criminality.
In relation to the release of individuals from prison, where the number of people in custody exceeds the maximum capacity in any prison, the Irish Prison Service make every effort to deal with this through a combination of inter-prison transfers and appropriate use of structured Temporary Release.
Short term measures like inter-prison transfers and temporary release are used in prison systems across the world to manage prison populations and have long been a feature of the Irish Prison Service activities.
I can assure the Deputy that decisions in relation to temporary release are considered on a case by case basis. The safety of the public is paramount in those decisions, taking into account factors such as the gravity of the offence committed and the sentence received, offending history, behaviour while in prison, engagement in rehabilitative activities and risk of reoffending.
In relation to the records sought, my officials have advised that to provide these would require a manual examination of a considerable amount of records. Such an examination would require a disproportionate and inordinate amount of resources which I regret could not be justified.
