Professor Ian O'Donnell:

Finland is interesting, not only because its prison population is low but because it was very high. Consequently, one thing an Oireachtas committee can do is to make a strong and unequivocal statement that the prison population is too high. It can state it is unconscionably high and must come down. Without such a statement, all of the other measures cannot follow. While such a statement is required for the other measures to follow, seldom is it put in such stark terms. I believe a parliamentary committee can state matters have got out of hand and the numbers have drifted too high because of a lack of political will to pull them back down. It can state so doing lies within our control and that getting it back down to a more appropriate level will take time, will be complex and will require taking some risks. A statement along those lines is essential if there is to be movement to bring the numbers back down. A statement from a committee at this level in such spare terms really would help create a context in which a downward momentum might be generated.