Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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128. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality given the findings of the inspector of prisons that the vast majority of adult male prisoners, and all female prisoners, are accommodated in closed medium-security prisons, with only 8% of males in semi-open or open low-security accommodation, her plans to convert some of the existing accommodation to lower security arrangements. [39835/15]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Irish Prison Service that currently there are no plans to convert some of the existing accommodation in the Irish Prison System to lower security arrangements. The Irish Prison Service and the Probation Service are committed, in their Joint Service Strategic Action Plan 2015-2017, to respond to the needs of women prisoners and pursue a dedicated approach to working with women offenders. As part of this a joint internal working group has considered an open centre for women and recommends that a practical and cost effective way to address this, is to pursue step down facilities for women. My officials are currently considering a number of accommodation options in relation to women prisoners, and accommodation issues in general in the context of recommendations of the Penal Reform Group which reported in 2014.