Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 10 Dec 1997

Vol. 484 No. 4

Written Answers - Prison Accommodation.

Liz McManus

Question:

114 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the proportion of prisoners currently accommodated in single cells; if he will give the floor area of the cells in the new prison at Cloverhill; and the number of prisoners to be accommodated in each cell. [22475/97]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. O'Donoghue)

On 8 December 1997 approximately 50 per cent of all prisoners in custody were accommodated in single cells. This figure takes into account offenders in open centres where accommodation is generally of the dormitory type. The proportion of prisoners in single cells would be substantially higher but for the multiple occupancy of some cells directly attributable to the serious overcrowding problem.

Cell accommodation in the new remand prison, beside Wheatfield Place of Detention, is designed specifically for short-term occupation. With the appointment of additional judges and speeding-up of trials, remand prisoners could, on average, be expected to spend only a few weeks in custody and, in many cases, not more than 48 hours. In the main, cells in the new remand prison are designed to accommodate up to three prisoners each in bunk bed style accommodation and have a floor area of 10.7 square metres. The remainder of the cells have a floor area of 8.3 square metres, are for single person occupancy and will be used to accommodate individuals remanded for longer periods. Provision of single occupancy cells for all remand prisoners is not considered necessary and could not be justified on the grounds of either cost-effectiveness or operational needs.

Prisoners remanded by the courts, especially those imprisoned for the first time, are often in a somewhat distressed condition, mentally and/or physically, on arrival at the prison and as such the risk of attempts at self mutilation or suicide must be borne in mind. Experience has shown that shared accommodation is often the preferred option in such cases.