asked the Minister for Justice if, in view of the success in Belfast of the experiment of granting Christmas parole to long-term prisoners, he will adopt the system here.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Christmas Parole for Prisoners.
While I have much sympathy with the idea of Christmas parole there are no statutory powers which would enable me to adopt the experiment. It is however the practice to release before Christmas a number of prisoners whose sentences are due to terminate during the Christmas season.