Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 May 2024
441. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Justice for those prisoners in the Mountjoy Prison progression unit who are being put back into general population, what unique perks and rehabilitation services they will have access to reflect their progressed status. [21315/24]
View answerI am advised by the Irish Prison Service that until recently, people convicted of, or on remand for, sexual violence were accommodated at four primary locations – Midlands Prison, Arbour Hill Prison, Castlerea Prison and Mountjoy Training Unit. However, due to rising committals to prison for those convicted of sexual violence, it was decided to consider other options within the prison estate to accommodate this cohort.
The Progression Unit of Mountjoy Prison is self-sufficient in relation to recreation, education, work and training and there is no requirement for those living in this Unit to interact or traverse to the main prison. For this reason, it was decided that the Progression Unit is a suitable location to accommodate people convicted of, or on remand for, sexual violence.
The process of accommodating this cohort in the Progression Unit commenced during March 2024. On 29 April 2024, a total of 36 people had been accommodated in the Progression Unit and it is expected that further incremental movements of this cohort of offender to the Progression Unit will take place in the coming months.
Those who are currently accommodated in the Progression Unit, who are not serving their sentences for sexual violence will be moved to alternative suitable accommodation within the prison estate. Transfers and temporary release decisions will be made taking into account criteria including nature and gravity of offence, amount of time spent in custody and amount left on a prisoner’s sentence, information from An Garda Síochána, engagement with services and behaviour in custody – with public safety being paramount when these decisions are being made. Some may be moved to Open Centres with the additional freedom and integration supports that these areas of the prison estate provide. Others will move to another closed prison, and some may be released to one of the early release schemes.
The majority of prisoners moving from the Progression Unit are likely to be eligible for integrated sentence management and therefore their individual needs will be assessed on transfer to another closed prison or open centre. A sentence plan is drafted with the multidisciplinary team having regard to the services that are available in that prison and the strengths, risks and needs of that individual.
