Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan.

Sharon Keogan (Independent)
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I thank the Minister for coming in. I tabled this matter in order that he might provide a detailed plan and outline for the construction and delivery of the Thornton Hall prison. The overcrowding in prisons is nothing short of a crisis. The most recent figures show there are currently more than 730 prisoners in custody without bed space. The latter represents a 40% increase since January. This continues to lead to inhumane conditions where prisoners are sleeping on mattresses on floors and the risk of violence and health issues is ever present. The Irish Penal Reform Trust has repeatedly highlighted these issues, yet we see little progress being made in addressing them.

Thornton Hall is supposed to be the solution to the crisis. The site, which has cost the taxpayer €50 million so far, was intended for a new state-of-the-art prison facility. Despite this significant investment, however, it has been plagued by delays and mismanagement. The latest proposal to convert part of the site into an international protection accommodation centre is a clear indication of Government's failure to prioritise our prison system. Twenty years after the site being purchased, we must ask why the project there has not been completed. Why has work not even started? The need for additional prison capacity is undeniable. The revolving door system whereby prisoners are released within 24 hours due to overcrowding makes a mockery of our justice system. It does a disservice to the victims of crime and undermines public confidence in our ability to maintain law and order. Furthermore, the attempt to convert Thornton Hall to an international protection accommodation, IPA, centre is misguided. Accommodating new arrivals should not come at the expense of addressing domestic issues. The site was purchased with the intention of alleviating prison overcrowding and it should be used for that purpose. To this end, I ask the Minister outline to what extent the State plans to use the site for IPA and how it plans to balance this with prison construction.

Previously, I have highlighted the staggering costs associated with this project. Besides the price of the land, we have spent €114,000 over the past three years alone on what is effectively an empty site, yet we still have nothing to show for it. This is gross mismanagement of taxpayers' money. We need a clear timeline for the construction and delivery of Thornton Hall prison. The Government must commit to completing this project and ensuring that our prison system can operate effectively and humanely. I call on the Minister for Justice to provide a definite answer on when Thornton Hall will be built. We cannot continue to ignore the pressing issue of prison overcrowding. It is time for decisive action to ensure that our justice system functions as it should.

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Keogan for raising this important matter. It is unquestionably the case that we have a problem in respect of prison overcrowding. It is also the case that we need to make additional space available in our prisons in order to deal with an increase in the prison population over the past number of years. A great deal of work has been done to date to enhance prison infrastructure, provide additional capacity and explore alternatives to prison for those who are non-violent or non-serious offenders. The programme for Government, published earlier this year, contains a commitment to continued action in the area and to the construction of a prison at Thornton Hall.

I want Senator Keogan and the other Senators present to know that the Government will continue to invest in the prison estate to ensure that it is modern, fit for purpose and has the capacity to accommodate those committed to prison. In recent years, capacity across the prison estate has increased by more than 300 new spaces, with over 120 of these added in the past 12 months. There is more capacity to come on stream very soon. Since I became Minister for Justice, I have visited two prisons, Cloverhill Prison and Cork Prison. I visited the latter on Friday last. I am well aware from those visits of the excellent work done by prison officers in the Irish Prison Service. I am also aware, however, of the overcrowding problems in our prisons. I want to assure Senators that further spaces will be delivered in 2025 as part of an overall plan out to 2030.

The Irish Prison Service has a total budget of €525 million for 2025, an increase of €79 million, or 18%, over 2024. Obviously, the issue to which Senator Keogan refers relates to the capital budget. The Prison Service capital budget stands at €53 million in 2025, an increase of €22.5 million on the original allocation for 2024. The reason the Government agreed to such a significant increase in the capital budget is because of the overcrowding in our prisons. In July 2023, a prison overcrowding response group was established, comprising officials from my Department and representatives of relevant agencies. The function of the group was to consider measures to address capacity issues in the prison estate. In June 2024, on foot of a report from this group, range of actions were approved and work to implement these is ongoing.

A working group was established in the second half of 2024 to further consider future prison capacity needs and make recommendations on the volume and types of prison capacity needed to 2035. The work of this group will support and inform future developments, including at Thornton Hall. As part of the comprehensive accommodation strategy for international protection, a portion of the land of Thornton Hall was identified for potential accommodation for IPA applicants.In 2024, the Irish Prison Service signed a two-year licence agreement with the Department of children for the use of approximately 30 acres of the site for the accommodation of persons seeking international protection. Nonetheless, Thornton Hall remains within the ownership of the Irish Prison Service and is very much part of the service's plans to increase capacity.

Works on the site at Thornton Hall to provide accommodation for IP applicants are paused temporarily following recent legal proceedings. My Department revoked the ministerial order put in place for the site and plans to develop a replacement order over the coming months. The site remains secured and my Department hopes to recommence work there as soon as possible. I re-emphasise that Thornton Hall is an important part of my response and the Government's response to the overcrowding crisis.

Sharon Keogan (Independent)
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I thank the Minister. Basically, he is saying that lands at Thornton Hall will not be used for international protection accommodation and that he has revoked the order on that. Did he know a contract was signed this time last year with the provider on that site for the provision of accommodation for international protection applicants? I do not know how long the contract was signed for. I think it was two years the Department of integration signed it for. Was the Minister aware of that? Is the taxpayer still paying for that?

That will be great news for the residents of the area but it is the prison I am here for today. I want to see the prison built at that site. A lot of investment has gone into it. Not only do I demand it, but the public demands it. We have a revolving door system and we do not have enough prison spaces. I wish the Minister well and want to see this delivered in his time. The €53 million will not go very far but I hope the Government is committed to giving the Minister many more millions to deliver that.

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I will clarify what I said in case there is any ambiguity. I said the Department had revoked the ministerial order put in place for the Thornton Hall site and that there were plans to develop a replacement order in the coming months. That is what I indicated to the Senator.

In terms of Thornton Hall being used as a prison, it is unquestionably the case that we need further prison space. That is why the programme for Government commits to providing 1,500 new spaces. Part of that will have to be the construction of a new prison. Thornton Hall appears to be a viable option as a location for the construction of that new prison.

These things, I hate to say, take considerable periods of time. We have an overcrowding crisis in our prisons. It was there last year, it was there when I arrived and it is there at present. We also need to look at solutions in terms of developing immediate spots and spaces for our Prison Service. That is ongoing. The Irish Prison Service is doing very good work in that regard but it is not a quick fix, I regret to say, in terms of resolving the overcrowding crisis.