Sinéad Gibney
Ceist:834. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Justice the number of people toileting in the presence of another in Irish Prisons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3282/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraWednesday, 5 February 2025
Ceisteanna (834)
Freagraí scríofa
I am informed that the information requested by the Deputy is collated by the Irish Prison Service on a periodic basis. The January 2025 census is currently being finalised and will be published on the Irish Prison Service website in the coming weeks.
In the interim, I can advise the Deputy that according to the most recently completed census of cell occupancy, taken on 16 July 2024, there were 5,018 people in custody on that day, of whom 1,956 had access to toilet facilities in private. This means that they were accommodated in a single cell, or had access to a fully partitioned or en-suite toilet. In addition, 3,056 prisoners were accommodated in shared cells which may have resulted in the need to use the toilet in the presence of others.
The Deputy will be aware that the Irish Prison Service provides a range of accommodation across the prison estate. This includes traditional cellular accommodation in closed male prisons, including a mix of single, double, triple and multi-occupancy cells. In addition, dormitory and bedroom style accommodation is provided in open/semi open male prisons and bedroom and/or apartment style accommodation is provided in female prisons.
As the Deputy may be aware, traditional prison cells across the prison estate, with the exception of a very small number of cells in Portlaoise Prison, now include in-cell sanitation. This includes the provision of a toilet and wash hand basin and can include a modesty screen to protect the privacy of the cell user while maintaining an appropriate line of sight for staff who must always be in a position to monitor the prisoner for security and safety reasons.
I am informed that it is not possible to introduce fully partitioned toilet facilities in traditional closed prison cells as to do so would negatively impact on the availability of living space within the cell. This could lead to the requirement to reduce the capacity of a large number of cells across the prison estate, which is simply not possible due to the numbers in custody and current committal trends.
The introduction of a fully partitioned toilet in such cells would also impact on the ability of prison staff to monitor the occupant which could have a negative impact on the safety and security of cell occupants.