Vol. 463 No. 6
10 Mr. O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Justice the number of prisoners granted temporary release from Irish prisons since 1 January 1995; the specific crimes committed in each case; the prison sentence imposed in each case; and the term served in each case. [7184/96]
71 Mr. H. Byrne asked the Minister for Justice the number of prisoners granted temporary release from Irish prisons since 1 January 1995; the specific crimes committed in each case; the prison sentence imposed in each case; and the term served in each case. [7029/96]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 10 and 71 together.
The number of full temporary releases granted in any one year is approximately 4,000. In addition, approximately 4,500 individuals would be granted varying periods of short-term temporary release in the course of any one year for such reasons as funerals, medical attention and family visits to see children or ill parents. The information sought by the Deputy on the relationships between temporary release and offences, sentences imposed and lengths of sentences served, is not readily available. To ascertain it would require the manual examination of over 10,000 individual offender's files and the collation of the information. Such use of staff time could not be justified at present.
The temporary release system has been operated under statute since 1960 by successive Minister for Justice. Before granting temporary release the Minister has regard to a number of factors. These factors would include the circumstances of the offence, the length of sentence imposed by the Court, the length of time served, as well as other factors such as behaviour while in custody, the previous record of the offender and whether the granting of temporary release would be likely to pose a threat to the community. In recent years, i.e. at least over the last four years, the shortage of prison accommodation has also been a factor for consideration when temporary releases are being effected.
A system of review meetings is operated at all the prisons and this enables the views of the various agencies dealing with an offender — such as prison staff, chaplains and the probation and welfare service — to be fully taken into account.
If temporary release, whether full or short-term, is granted it is always subject to conditions. In all cases there is the condition that the person released must be of good behaviour. Other conditions could include supervision by the probation and welfare service, reporting at regular intervals to a Garda station etc. Temporary release automatically ends if any conditions are breached in which event the individual concerned can be immediately returned to custody without warrant or without any court proceedings.
Temporary release arrangements are in effect our system of parole. Paroles are an important vehicle for re-integrating an offender into the community in a planned way. While due regard must be had to any risk a particular release might pose, the generally accepted view is that the risk to the community would be even greater if, in certain cases, attempts at planned re-integration of offenders were not made since they must return to the community, anyway, on the expiry of their sentence. Short-term temporary release such as one day, two days or a few hours would also be an integral part of most countries' penal system.
Will the Minister accept that nothing saps the morale of the Garda Síochána more than the sight of prisoners whom they have helped to put away walking the streets, having served only a short-term of their sentence? Will the Minister accept that the sole criterion used for most temporary releases is that there is insufficient prison spaces? In that context, will she agree that it was a fundamental error and a downright disgrace for the Government to cancel the prison work at Castlerea and Mountjoy?
As the question tabled is essentially a statistical one policy matters should not arise. I am moving on to Question No. 11.
I have put an extremely important question to the Minister and I entitled to a reply.
The question is a statistical one. Perhaps the Deputy should have phrased it differently if he wished to question a matter of policy.
I accept it is a statistical question, but as I am trying to establish the reason the statistics are so frighteningly high I am entitled to a reply from the Minister.
A statistical question does not afford an opportunity to deal with policy matters. There have been many rulings on this issue. I have called Question No. 11.
