Inmates moved from UK freed by loophole

Ten prisoners transferred to Irish prisons after receiving lengthy sentences in the UK have had to be freed because of a loophole in the law.

The 10, including a convicted drug smuggler and three men found guilty of plotting a bombing campaign in Britain, were released from Irish jails last year.

All applications for prisoner transfers from the UK are now understood to be on hold and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald is preparing to go to the Supreme Court to try to clarify the law amid concerns that other inmates will have to be freed.