Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 299: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the position regarding a PACE facility (details supplied) in Dublin 9; his views on recent speculation that the Mountjoy Dóchas Centre is overcrowded and that prisoners have been released as a result; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43875/08]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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My Department, through the Probation Service, provides funding to over 50 voluntary bodies to assist with the management of adult offenders in the community and to add value to the core work of the Probation Service. The PACE organisation is one such facility, which provides training and accommodation services for ex-offenders. In 2008, my Department through the Probation Service provided €1.5 million to PACE. I can confirm that my Department has not received any application from PACE for additional funds for the development of the premises that is the subject of this question. With regard to the number of women in custody since the opening of the Dóchas Centre in 1999, there has been a serious overcrowding problem at the centre, despite the provision of an additional 20 spaces during the final phase of its construction. For example, on 1 December 2008 there were 110 prisoners in custody in the Dóchas Centre. This figure exceeded the bed capacity by 29%. In addition, there are 41 female prisoners on temporary release from the Dóchas Centre. Social and demographic trends indicate that we will continue to experience an increasing level of women prisoners in our prison system. In anticipation of this increase, the Government intends to include an expanded version of the Dóchas Centre in the plans to move the entire Mountjoy Prison Complex to a greenfield site in the greater Dublin area. Further accommodation for women prisoners will also be included in the planned Munster prison.

The Criminal Justice (Temporary Release of Prisoners) Act 2003 provides that the Minister may approve the temporary release of a sentenced prisoner. This discretionary instrument assists in gradually preparing suitable offenders for release, in administering short sentences and is an incentive to well-behaved prisoners. Temporary release arrangements operate similarly to a system of parole, which is a feature of prison systems worldwide. They are an important vehicle for reintegrating an offender into the community in a planned way. The generally accepted view is that the risk to the community is reduced by planned reintegration of offenders compared with their return to the community on the completion of their full sentence. Each case is examined on its own merits and the safety of the public is paramount when decisions are made. In addition, all releases are subject to conditions which in the vast majority of cases include a requirement to report on a regular basis to the offender's local Garda station. Of course, any offender who breaches his or her conditions may be arrested and returned to prison immediately by the Garda.