Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the measures the Irish Prison Services/Probation have taken to enhance alternatives to prison and supports for released prisoners in Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3448/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will be aware that I published a strategy entitled "Unlocking Community Alternatives – a Cork Approach" in February 2012. The strategy comprises two essential elements:

- firstly exploring the feasibility of replacing the existing prison through the construction of a new prison with all related and support ancillary services, on the adjacent prison car park site and

- secondly the enhancement of sentence management, prisoner interventions and structured release of suitably risk assessed prisoners into the community on a multi-agency approach basis. Arising from the publication of the Strategy the Irish Prison Service in co-operation with the Probation Service, statutory and non-statutory community based services set up a Cork based implementation team to progress the Strategy and to develop robust community based programmes which could act as alternatives to custody.

In December 2012, a joint Irish Prison Service/Probation Service Initiative was introduced which specifically aims at providing supports to prisoners immediately before and during the critical period after their release. The primary aims and goals of this Scheme are to (a) reduce the current recidivism rates by arranging for additional support structures and (b) provide for a more structured form of temporary release. It is anticipated that over 160 prisoners will benefit from this initiative in 2013.