Dáil Éireann Debate, Monday - 11 September 2023
1099. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Justice for an update on the number of the 100 proposed additional prison officers who have been hired for the Irish Prison Service; the prisons to which they are assigned; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37538/23]
View answerThe recruitment of Recruit Prison Officers by the Irish Prison Service has been ongoing since 2017 and has regard to such factors as organisational needs and exit levels. To support the operation of the prison estate and ensure that the organisation can continue to provide important rehabilitative services to those in our care in a safe and secure manner, the Irish Prison Service was allocated additional funding for the recruitment of circa 100 additional Prison Officers.
It is expected that by year end up to 250 Recruit Prison Officers will have been recruited in total and I can inform the Deputy that from the beginning of the year to 4 September 2023 a total of 133 Recruit Prison Officers have been recruited.
These newly recruited staff have been, and will continue to be, deployed across the Prison estate. For security and operational reasons, the Irish Prison Service is not in a position to provide a breakdown of the operational staffing resources allocated to individual locations however the allocation of staffing is based on the security and operational needs of each location. The number of staff required is influenced by various factors including, in particular, the numbers in custody, the category of prisoner and regimes, and a range of other factors, such as the risks and needs associated with specific areas and particular offenders.
I can further inform the Deputy that the Irish Prison Service launched their most recent Recruit Prison Officer campaign via the Public Appointments Service on 24 August 2023 which has generated significant interest to date. Further details on this campaign can be found on www.publicjobs.ie and www.irishprisons.ie.
