Michael Ring
Question:551 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the cost of keeping a prisoner in prison, specifying each prison, for each of the past five years; and the reason for any disparity. [7904/03]
Written Answers - Prison Costs.
The information sought by the Deputy on the cost of keeping a prisoner is provided hereunder for the years from 1997 to 2001. The 2002 figures will not be available until the completion of the 2002 Appropriation Accounts.
|
Institution |
1997€ |
1998€ |
1999€ |
2000€ |
2001€ |
|
Arbour Hill |
49,619 |
53,221 |
60,243 |
63,741 |
67,300 |
|
Castlerea |
0 |
76,919 |
57,585 |
63,233 |
66,700 |
|
Cork |
48,854 |
55,187 |
54,255 |
63,614 |
65,800 |
|
Cloverhill |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
63,100 |
|
Curragh |
52,947 |
48,100 |
52,692 |
57,900 |
60,700 |
|
Fort Mitchell |
60,413 |
63,708 |
63,884 |
78,978 |
83,300 |
|
Limerick |
74,529 |
62,778 |
59,024 |
68,058 |
83,500 |
|
Loughan House |
47,897 |
58,934 |
53,687 |
53,583 |
58,600 |
|
Mountjoy (male and female) |
61,991 |
67,870 |
67,652 |
75,168 |
84,300 |
|
Portlaoise |
134,308 |
153,698 |
175,830 |
157,828 |
177,400 |
|
Shanganagh Castle |
54,046 |
64,081 |
73,688 |
103,357 |
127,000 |
|
Shelton Abbey |
54,294 |
57,246 |
59,317 |
67,677 |
118,600 |
|
St. Patrick's Institution |
49,002 |
61,374 |
59,207 |
67,296 |
69,400 |
|
Training Unit |
45,472 |
49,552 |
54,953 |
61,709 |
61,500 |
|
Wheatfield |
55,872 |
62,951 |
59,114 |
61,328 |
64,400 |
|
Overall average cost per prisoner |
58,171 |
67,804 |
66,228 |
75,638 |
79,000 |
The Midlands Prison was not fully operational during 2001 and has, therefore, been excluded from the institution table.
The average cost of keeping an offender is calculated by averaging out the current running costs of the prisons and places of detention against the average number of offenders in those institutions. These costs include certain items which are fixed no matter what the number of offenders in custody – for example, utilities, staff salaries, etc.
In regard to the figures for the individual prisons, I would like to inform the Deputy of the following: Cloverhill Prison became fully operational during 2001 and, therefore, no figures have been included for previous years; Castlerea Prison opened in May 1998 and did not reach full capacity until 1999. This resulted in a higher average cost per prisoner in 1998; the increase in average cost in 1999 for Portlaoise Prison compared to 1998 and 2000 reflected the reduction in average numbers due to prisoners being released under the Good Friday Agreement. The average number of prisoners detained in the prison has increased since this time; the average number of prisoners in Limerick Prison in 1997 was 145 compared to 225 in 1999 and 2000. This resulted in a higher average cost per prisoner in 1997; and the significant increase in the average cost of keeping an offender in Shelton Abbey in 2001 arose from the reduction of the centre's capacity by 50% to facilitate major remedial works, which have now been completed.
The overall average cost of keeping an offender increased by 35.8% over this five year period. The general decrease in 1999 arose because additional staff were recruited in advance of the new prison in Cloverhill opening in 2000. The additional staff were initially assigned to other prisons which resulted in reduced overtime costs in these prisons. In addition, there was an overall increase in the number of prisoners throughout the prison system. The biggest factor which resulted in the increase in average prisoner costs over this five year period was pay increases resulting from national pay agreements.
Michael Ring
Question:552 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the difference between the average cost of keeping a prisoner in prison here per annum and that of the average cost per annum internationally. [7905/03]
The following table outlines the latest figures available in relation to the average cost of keeping an offender in prison in Ireland and in three adjoining jurisdictions. All costs are shown in euro.
|
Year |
Country |
Cost |
|
€ |
||
|
2001 |
Ireland |
79,000 |
|
2001 |
England and Wales |
34,000 |
|
2001 |
Scotland* |
45,000 |
|
2001 |
Northern Ireland |
129,000 |
* Refers to cost per prison place.
I would caution that there is currently no information readily available to me on the precise methodology and procedures used by our UK counterparts in the preparation of their figures, and this should be borne in mind in any comparison of these figures to the current Irish figures.