Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 May 2026
807. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of inmates in prisons or places of detention in Ireland that are required to sleep on camp beds, not including those on permanent single beds or mattresses, broken down by prison, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39323/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Irish Prison Service must accept into custody all people committed to prison by the Courts and has no control over the numbers committed to custody at any given time.
The Irish Prison Service has confirmed that information regarding the number of persons in custody in all prisons, is collated each day by the Irish Prison Service Statistics Unit and published on its website (www.irishprisons.ie). This information can be found in the Information Centre under Statistics & Information, Daily Population Figures.
I can advise the Deputy that on 20 May 2026 there were six female prisoners in Limerick Prison sleeping on camp-style beds. These types of beds are not in use anywhere else in the prison estate.
I am pursuing a dual approach to address the issue of prison overcrowding by both increasing prison capacity and pursuing further measures to support increased use of non-custodial sanctions.
Since 2024, 232 spaces have been constructed across the Prison Estate, with 126 delivered in 2024 and 106 in 2025. There are plans to build another 65 spaces in 2026. In addition, Government has allocated funding for a significant building programme across the prison estate. I have secured a record capital investment of €528 million for the Irish Prison Service (IPS) over the next 5 years, of which €495 million will be invested to deliver one of the most significant capital building programmes in the justice sector, with an overall target of delivering over 1,500 prison spaces by 2031.
A multi-year building programme is progressing at several key sites across the prison estate. The programme includes a large extension to the existing Cork Prison on the site of the old, decommissioned Cork Prison, a new block in Wheatfield, an additional block extension at Midlands prison and additional spaces at Castlerea, Mountjoy and the Dóchas Centre. The record capital allocation will also allow for work to start to plan and develop a new prison on the Thornton site in North County Dublin. A master plan for the site will be developed in 2026.
I have also sought and secured an exemption from the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation for 6 projects (960 prison spaces) to move straight to Approval Gate 2 – Pre Tender Approval of the Infrastructure Guidelines, a measure which is expected to speed up the delivery of these projects by 12 to 18 months.
