Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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437. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if she will provide a breakdown of the total number of prisoners who have died in the State, by cause of death in each of the past ten years and to date in 2022, in tabular form. [44669/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I can advise the Deputy that the information relating to the number of prisoners who died in the State in each of the last ten years and to date in 2022 is provided in the tables below.

As previously advised, the Irish Prison Service does not record the cause of death where the death occurred while the prisoner was outside the prison either on temporary release, renewable temporary release, full temporary release or unlawfully at large.

All deaths in custody are notified to An Garda Síochána, who investigate where circumstances warrant, in addition to the inquest held in the Coroner's Court. The cause of death is determined by a jury on the basis of the information presented to the Coroner's Court.

The Deputy will also be aware that since April 2012 all deaths in custody are also subject to an independent investigation by the Inspector of Prisons.

Further the Prison Service has a robust, internal review mechanism which assesses the circumstances of a death in custody, highlights accountability and actions taken in relation to the incident, and outlines lessons learned. This outcome review is reported to the Irish Prison Service National Suicide and Harm Prevention Steering Group, which is chaired by the Director General.

The circumstances of each death in custody and incident of self-harm are also examined by a suicide prevention group in each institution. The groups are chaired by the Prison Governor and include representatives from the various services including; Prison Doctor, Psychiatry, Psychology, Chaplaincy, Probation, Education, and Prison staff. The Groups are required to meet quarterly, or more often if necessary. Their examinations fully cover the background and circumstances of each death. Their objective is to identify, where possible, measures which might be implemented to contribute to a reduction in the risk of deaths in the future.

Table 2: Deaths in Custody 2012 to 11 September 2022 inclusive classified by cause of death as determined by Coroner