Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 7 February 2024
342. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Justice the rationale behind granting and then revoking temporary release for individuals in Shelton Abbey Prison in the month of December 2023; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5165/24]
View answerTemporary Release may be granted to prisoners in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1960, as amended. One of the main purposes of temporary release is to assist in re-integrating prisoners into the community. In considering whether to grant temporary release, consideration must be given to a range of factors including the nature and gravity of the offence, the length of the sentence imposed, the time served to date, the potential threat (if any) to the public, the risk of the person failing to return to prison after a period of temporary release, and the person’s conduct.
At present, applications for temporary release in respect of some categories of prisoners (typically those with short sentences) may be approved by the Irish Prison Service. Applications in respect of others, including life-sentence prisoners and those sentenced to eight years or more of imprisonment, are submitted by the Irish Prison Service for Ministerial consideration.
Applications may be submitted for temporary release at Christmas, in accordance with guidelines approved annually. As the Deputy may already be aware, 139 prisoners were granted varying periods of temporary release in respect of the Christmas period in 2023. Of those, I approved temporary release for 17 life-sentence prisoners.
During December 2023, in their initial consideration of applications for Christmas temporary release, the Irish Prison Service identified that a small number of applications were from prisoners serving sentences of eight years or more who were not at that time eligible under the guidelines to apply for Christmas temporary release. These applications were therefore not submitted for formal consideration and were not granted Christmas temporary release. The Irish Prison Service has since submitted applications for programmes of temporary release in respect of each of the prisoners concerned and consideration of those applications is ongoing.
