Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy may be aware, 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 may also know that all deaths in custody and deaths that occur within one month of temporary release, are also subject to an independent investigation by the Inspector of Prisons. The investigations in some cases are more complex than others and can require additional time and resources to complete. It is acknowledged that the duration of more complex investigations can cause frustration, but the Inspectorate are committed to conducting a thorough and rigorous investigation in each and every case. It is anticipated that the investigation into the death referenced by the Deputy will be completed very shortly.

Following the completion of an investigation, the Inspector of Prisons Office makes recommendations for improvement where appropriate. These recommendations are forwarded to the Prison Service for their attention and the final report is submitted to the Minister for Justice. Finalised reports and any associated Prison Service Action Plan to address the recommendations made are published in an anonymised form on the Gov.ie website and made available to the Coroner.

In addition to this process, the Irish 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 and 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.