Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

In the coming weeks 100 new spaces at Castlerea and 150 spaces at Wheatfield will become available. The remaining balance will become available later on. These are new places and I do not accept the allegation that the Government has done little in this respect. We have planned the extra 1,300 prison places over the past ten years with another 400. For the long term, we are examining the prison estate, replacing Mountjoy Prison which is out of date and proceeding with the Thornton Hall project. The Government is also examining means of preventing people entering the prison system through restorative justice and other programmes.

See this speech in context