Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 169: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of prisons closed and cell spaces lost arising therefrom in each of the past ten years to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21814/09]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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Since 1997 in excess of 1,300 prison spaces have come on stream in the prison system. These include the new prisons in Castlerea, the Midlands, Cloverhill, the Dóchas Centre and new accommodation in Limerick Prison. A further 400 extra paces are coming on stream this year in Castlerea, Wheatfield and Portlaoise Prisons.

These significant developments increased our overall capacity as well as replacing a significant number of sub standard cells. This was necessary to meet human rights obligations and to respond to the very real criticisms raised by national and international experts in the penal policy field.

It is against this background that Shanganagh Castle Open Centre for juveniles was closed in late 2002 and the Curragh and Fort Mitchel (Spike Island) Prisons closed in early 2004. For example the four person cell accommodation in Fort Mitchel was not deemed suitable in a modern penal system. The total number of prison spaces taken out of the system in the above closures was 256 but this did not result in any net decline in capacity. The closures were more than offset by the bringing into operation of previously unused prison spaces and improvements to the prison estate I have outlined earlier. For example, the opening of a new wing in Limerick Prison fully offset the loss of Fort Mitchell and the loss of capacity in the case of the Curragh Place of Detention was completely offset by the opening of a previously unopened wing in the Midlands Prison.

Shanganagh Castle was sold and the money received covered in full the cost of the site at Thornton Hall. It had become increasingly difficult to identify young male offenders suitable for the type of open prison accommodation provided at Shanganagh and the annual cost of keeping an offender there was significantly higher than the average overall cost per prisoner in other institutions. The Curragh Prison has been returned to the Department of Defence. It was in a very run down condition and the redevelopment of the prison did not make economic or operational sense.

I should also point out that there is no potential to reopen any of these facilities. Small stand-alone prisons accommodating 100 prisoners or less are simply not efficient and in the current fiscal climate do not make economic sense. The policy of the Irish Prison Service is to, where possible, develop campus-style developments which take advantage of economies of scale and operational efficiencies.