Ms Ciara Kirrane:

The Deputy also asked about a slow down in applications. There have always been about three times the amount of applications as have been successfully completed. There will always be some people who are ineligible or who do not meet the required criteria under the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act. There is a difficulty at the processing end of things in getting through the amount of applications received. We would certainly like to see an improvement in that. That might require more resources for the Irish Prison Service to deal with the applications, or it might require more focus. I am not entirely sure what the solution is but we certainly have not reached the level of applications being accepted that we should have.