Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

It is not possible to provide figures to the Deputy for all forms of temporary release as this would require the manual examination of records. Such an examination would require a disproportionate and inordinate amount of staff time and effort. It could not be justified in current circumstances when there are other significant demands on resources.

However, I am advised by the director general of the Prison Service that figures for granted weekly reviewable temporary release in April 2010 represents an average of 36 prisoners granted temporary release per day, 0.86% of the average number in custody in April. The average daily number of persons on temporary release for the month of April was 836 persons, approximately 16.3%.

The Criminal Justice Act 1960, as amended by the Criminal Justice (Temporary Release of Prisoners) Act 2003, provides that the Minister may approve the temporary release of a sentenced prisoner. The Prison Service utilises temporary release as part of its programme of sentence management. Temporary release arrangements operate similarly to a system of parole, which is a feature of prison systems worldwide. It is an important vehicle for reintegrating an offender into the community in a planned way.

Each case is examined on its merits and the safety of the public is paramount when decisions are made. In addition, all releases are subject to conditions, which in the majority of cases, include a requirement of the offender to report regularly to his or her Garda station. One of the main issues taken into consideration when deciding whether a prisoner is suitable for temporary release is public safety. Any offender who breaches his or her conditions may be arrested and returned to prison immediately by the Garda.

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