Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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95. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of prisoners that have applied for rehabilitative training throughout the various prisons here over the past 12 months; the number granted and the number refused; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17617/16]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that the Irish Prison Service provides a wide range of rehabilitative programmes to those in custody that include education, vocational training, healthcare, psychiatric, psychological, counselling, welfare and spiritual services. These programmes can offer purposeful activity to those in custody while serving their sentences and encouraging them to lead law abiding lives on release. These programmes are available in all prisons and all prisoners are eligible to use the services.

On committal, all prisoners are interviewed by the Governor and are informed of the services available in the prison. At this point prisoners may be referred to services or they can self refer at a later date. Where Governors consider, on the information available, that a prisoner needs a particular intervention they will initiate a referral.

The development of prisoner programmes forms a central part of the Irish Prison Service Three Year Strategic Plan 2016 - 2018 which I intend to publish on 27 June 2016. There is a clear commitment in the Strategy to enhance sentence planning through Integrated Sentence Management and the delivery of prison based rehabilitative programmes.

The manner in which records are collated does not allow the Irish Prison Service to provide figures on the number who have applied for rehabilitative training or the number granted or refused.