Vol. 443 No. 4
106 Mr. Barry asked the Minister for Justice the number of persons given early release from prison since January 1993; the number of releases that were as a result of representations made by Members of the Oireachtas; and the counties where the people who were released normally reside.
The precise information sought by the Deputy is not readily available and could not be obtained without an unwarranted expenditure of staff time.
The latest statistics available, compiled for the Annual Reports on Prisons and Places of Detention, indicates that some 2,700 prisoners a year are granted full temporary release. In addition, around 2,800 prisoners are granted varying lengths of renewable temporary release. There would, of course, be some element of duplication of individuals in these releases. Incidently, the total number of persons committed to custody annually is now running at about 10,000, and at any time there are between 2,100 and 2,200 in custody.
