Gang culture is posing such a threat at Mountjoy Prison in Dublin that up to one in four inmates are seeking to be confined to a solitary cell for their own protection.

Inmates have been given €498,708 in interest-free loans by the Irish Prison Service in the past three years.

A special prison unit is being set up to house the country’s most violent prisoners.

The number of people being jailed for failing to pay court fines has fallen by around 1,000 following the introduction of laws aimed at effectively eliminating the sanction.

The Egyptian ambassador has declined an invitation to appear before an Oireachtas committee and discuss the ongoing detention of Irish teenager Ibrahim Halawa in a Cairo jail.

A coalition of aid agencies and rights organisations has said the Government must significantly increase the number of refugees it has indicated it will take in.

A growing number of Irish citizens believe the Government can and should deliver on its overseas aid obligations.

The Rehab Group is to consider changing its name following the damage to the brand inflicted by controversies surrounding pay and pension arrangements of former senior executives which has resulted in a €1m reduction in donations.

Aid agencies have questioned the Government’s commitment to contributing 0.7% of gross national income towards overseas aid after yesterday’s budget showed no increase in funding for overseas development assistance.

A UN report shows Brazil is winning, and exporting, its anti-austerity policies, writes Hans Zomer

Elderly artist and anti-war activist, Margaretta D'Arcy, who was released early from prison this morning after serving part of a second prison sentence over her opposition to the US military use of Shannon Airport, has described conditions inside Limerick prison as "inhumane".

The overcrowding crisis in women’s prisons continues to deepen, with 40% of female inmates being let out on temporary release due to a dire shortage of space.

There is “no strong evidence” the drugs problem in Irish prisons is reducing, despite the massive security infrastructure put in place, according to a new report.

I could not disagree more with the letter (Foreign aid should be stopped immediately, May 28).

The visiting committee of the Dóchas Centre women’s prison have complained of shabby accommodation, overcrowding, lack of toilets for visitors, and inadequate medical, dental, and mental health services.

I HAVE a friend called Ger.

A sad day for one family proves everyone is equal before the law, writes Michael Clifford

More than 30,000 cases of temporary release have been granted in prisons over the last eight months, official figures show.

Hard times for charities: A perfect storm or an opportunity? Charities may not be run for profit, but they still need to have high standards of corporate governance, writes Hans Zomer

A judge has recommended that a Limerick woman accused of murdering a father-of-two, who was shot dead in west Dublin last month, is to be held at a prison closer to her family.

The Abara film festival includes Music By Prudence, the Oscar-winning documentary, writes Colette Sheridan.

AN Irish Examiner survey of the pay packages earned by the heads of leading charities shows most are on salaries ranging from €100,000 to €150,000.

Irish people have donated €12m to help those hit by famine in the Horn of Africa.

PRISON bosses are planning to address persistent problems regarding the supply of drugs over jail walls and the lack of security cameras in key prisons.

THE Government yesterday said that it would stand by its target of ensuring that 20% of its overseas development aid budget would go towards tackling hunger.

THE state faces “the live prospect” of being sued in Irish and European courts if legal obligations to prisoners are not met, the Inspector of Prisons has warned.

THIS weekend marks World Food Day (October 16) and UN Day for the Eradication of Poverty (October 17).

FOREIGN Minister Micheál Martin recently co-chaired a high-profile event with US secretary of state Hillary Clinton in the margin of the UN Millennium Development Goals review summit in New York.

FORMER Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald is heading a campaign to push the Government to honour its commitments on overseas aid despite the recession.

PRISON boss Brian Purcell has hit back at claims from a prison governor her job had been made “completely impossible” by the Prison Service.

A CHIEF prison officer claimed yesterday that the voice on a mobile phone confiscated from Catherine Nevin was that of sitting Fine Gael councillor Dr Bill Tormey.

Ireland’s development NGOs today welcomed the commitment by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to introduce legislation obliging the UK government to raise spending on aid to the poorest countries to 0.7% of national income

THE Government’s decision to cut overseas financial aid by €222 million this year prompted a demonstration on the streets of Dublin yesterday by members of non-governmental aid agencies throughout Ireland.

Government borrowing to run the country for 10 days matches the entire overseas aid budget for one year, an under-fire junior minister revealed today.

THE Minister for Overseas Development has appealed to aid agencies to maintain good working relations with his department in the face of severe criticisms over dramatic cuts in funding to help the world’s poor.

Dóchas, the umbrella group representing Ireland's development NGOs, today called on the Government to show leadership and improve our cooperation with the countries worst affected by the global economic crisis.

OVERSEAS aids agencies reacted with shock and horror at the €100 million cut in Ireland’s overseas aid budget announced by Brian Lenihan.

Irish aid agencies today joined forces to appeal to the Government not to cut overseas aid in the upcoming mini budget.

Ireland’s overseas development NGOs today expressed shock at the Government’s decision to slash the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget by €95m.

THE mounting overcrowding problem in Irish prisons looks set to continue following official indications that the planned superprison at Thornton Hall will be delayed well beyond 2011.

WOMEN in need of follow-up physiotherapy after undergoing breast cancer surgery in the Mid-Western Regional Hospital are being forced to go to Cork, it has been claimed.

SOCIAL workers are assessing the possibility of murderer Charlotte Mulhall caring for her infant boy behind bars temporarily.

YESTERDAY’S other developments: The US and France were close to agreement on a UN Security Council resolution aimed at ending fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, the American ambassador said.

The Government and aid agencies called on the public today to give more generously to appeals for the humanitarian crisis in Lebanon.