Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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247. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of Irish citizens imprisoned abroad, by country; and the number of those Irish prisoners in receipt of consular assistance on an ongoing basis. [33565/16]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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As of 4 November 2016, the number of Irish citizens imprisoned abroad that have been brought to my Department’s attention was 332. This figure includes 61 new prisoner cases recorded in the 12 month period to 4 November 2016. The following table provides details of the 15 foreign jurisdictions where these Irish citizens have been imprisoned. In addition to the 61 new prisoner cases during the past year, there were 352 cases of arrests of Irish citizens in the same period.

My Department’s policy is to provide consular assistance to any Irish prisoner that requests it. Such assistance is provided in a non-judgemental way, irrespective of the alleged offence.

Consular support provided by my Department to Irish prisoners abroad includes: helping the prisoner to keep in contact with family or friends back home; providing information about prison arrangements; arranging for funds sent by the family to be transferred to the prisoner (in line with prison arrangements); seeking to ensure that the prisoner is not discriminated against in any way on account of his/her nationality; seeking to ensure access to appropriate legal representation; and that the authorities in the country where he/she is being imprisoned fulfil their obligations in relation to ensuring the citizen’s health and wellbeing.

Requests from detained Irish citizens for a prison visit by a consular officer are facilitated in a timely way, insofar as the resources of the particular Embassy or Consulate and local conditions permit.

My Department also provides contacts for relevant non-governmental organisations, including the Irish Commission for Prisoners Overseas, whose excellent work my Department funds.

It is important to remember that under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, a detainee may decline an offer of consular support from their Foreign Ministry. My Department fully respects the right of an Irish prisoner to refuse an offer of support or assistance.

In the interests of transparency, since 21 October 2016 my Department has made its overall consular statistics available on its website www.dfa.ie (covering the period from 1^stJanuary to 30^thSeptember 2016). It is intended that these statistics will be updated on a regular basis in the future. In addition, the Deputy is welcome to contact consular staff in our Consular Assistance section in Dublin at 01 - 4082527 for any further information.

No. of new prisoner cases 01/11/2015 to 04/11/2016