Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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1244. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of prisoners who are members of organised criminal gangs; and the number who are due to be released from prison custody in 2022. [1184/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by my officials in the Irish Prison Service that there are currently 124 prisoners in custody associated with known organised criminal gangs currently serving a sentence or awaiting trial, of which 18 are due for release in 2022. The Deputy will wish to note that this figure excludes the subversive prisoners in Portlaoise Prison.

In addition there are 70-80 prisoners who are associates of these prisoners but are not known to be officially aligned to organised gangs.

Membership or allegiance of these criminal groups fluctuates on a continuous basis with some persons breaking links and others becoming affiliated on a daily basis.

It is also the case that prisoners will not always declare their affiliation to certain groupings and it is therefore not possible to provide definitive numbers in relation to the number of members of criminal groupings currently in custody.

It should also be noted that more than one criminal gang may group together under the umbrella of a particular group and in some instances some gangs may form splinter groups due to family or in house disputes.