Mr. Michael Donnellan:

I thank the joint committee for giving us this opportunity to update it on progress and the reforms being made within the Irish Prison Service and also to highlight the planned future direction of the service. I understand the committee is engaging with a range of groups, including the Irish Penal Reform Trust, the Prison Officers Association, etc. The meetings will be very important in helping tjo chart the future of the Irish Prison Service in the context of penal reform.

The committee will be aware that significant change and reform have occurred in the prison system in recent years, addressing many of the issues highlighted by the committee, including prison numbers, overcrowding and prison conditions. For years overcrowding caused a strain on the system and created significant challenges for management and staff of the Irish Prison Service in providing appropriate accommodation and constructive regimes for prisoners. Thankfully, the issue of overcrowding has been eliminated in the majority of prisons. The numbers in custody have fallen by 20% since their peak in 2011, while the numbers on temporary release have reduced by almost 70% during the same period. The implementation of the fines legislation is starting to have an effect, with some drop in the numbers coming to prison for fines offences. Provisional figures for 2016 show a decrease of approximately 15% on the figures for the previous year. This reduction in numbers has allowed the Irish Prison Service to progress and enhance several key services, including enhanced pre-release planning and resettlement; structured temporary release; the community return scheme and the community support scheme; the incentivised regime programme; drug treatment facilities; developing the psychology service; integrated sentence management facilities; working with the families of those imprisoned, as well as working with the third level sector and in-reach services.

The Irish Prison Service has continued to implement a comprehensive capital programme to provide additional accommodation and enhance the quality of accommodation across the prison estate. The priority has turned to improving existing accommodation and rehabilitative facilities. The number of prisoners slopping out has decreased from 1,003 in 2010 to just 49 or less than 1%. The refurbishment of Mountjoy Prison has been completed and all cells now have toilet facilities and wash-hand basins and been returned to single occupancy. In 2016 we saw the opening of a new prison in Cork. It provides high quality accommodation and for rehabilitation for families. It also allows the service to provide enhanced visiting facilities for prisoners and their families. Current and planned capital projects will result in the complete elimination of slopping out across the estate for the first time.

Huge progress has been made to incentivise prisoners to participate in constructive activities. The incentivised regime programme has provided real incentives to prisoners to participate and engage and has also reduced levels of violence across the estate. New training facilities have been provided for the first time in Mountjoy Prison. It is vital that the services and opportunities provided are available to all prisoners. As the committee will be aware, some prisoners are unable to associate with other prisoners for various reasons. These are mainly factors that come into the prison from outside and prison management must ensure the safety of all who work and reside within the walls. That said, we have made huge strides in reducing the numbers of prisoners who require protection or are accommodated on a restricted regime. The number of prisoners on 22 or 23-hour lock-up, or solitary confinement, has decreased from 211 in July 2013 to 72 in January this year. While this figure can fluctuate, we hope to and I am confident that we can eliminate solitary confinement as we know it when we implement the Mandela rules and our new policies.

The work we have undertaken has positively contributed to the goal of a safer, fairer and inclusive Ireland. Since 2013, in partnership with the Central Statistics Office, CSO, annual recidivism studies have been published that show a reduction in recidivism levels from 55% in 2007 to 45% in 2010, a drop of ten points. I am confident that we can take that down by another ten points over the next ten years and meet the best practice within Europe.

There are still significant challenges facing the Prison Service, including issues of mental health, the management of prisoners on protection and how the service can best manage violently disruptive prisoners. I am confident the Prison Service can meet these challenges and the work being undertaken by the committee will assist in our endeavours.

I am confident that the successful implementation of our strategy for 2012 to 2015 and our new strategy, built around four pillars - supporting our staff, supporting our prisoners, supporting victims and enhancing our organisational capacity - will see further improvements across the Prison Service in the years to come. I have no doubt that we could become a world-class prison service.