Offaly safely negotiated a potentially tricky first round qualifier tie at Bord na Móna O’Connor Park in Tullamore this afternoon, where they had the brilliance of Bernard Allen to thank for the ten-point winning margin they enjoyed against London.

The number of people being sent to prison has halved in the last three years due to a massive reduction in the jailing of fine defaulters.

Penal reformers have welcomed the massive drop in people being jailed for non-payment of court fines — but are concerned at the rise in prison numbers caused by more committals for non-fine offences.

Garda operations against feuding gangs and roaming burglary groups are believed to be driving a surge in the number of people being held on remand in prison.

New laws diverting fine defaulters from jail have driven a 40% drop in the number of committals to prison.

Penal reformers have expressed concern over reported degrading ‘initiation’ rites for young adults in prisons, involving urination and defecation.

State authorities estimate there will be more than 100 assaults by prisoners on staff this year, the Oireachtas justice committee heard yesterday.

The number of people committed to Irish jails continues to rise, with women making up 20% of the prison population. There were 17,206 committals to prison in 2015, an increase of 6.5% on the 2014 total of 16,155.

Almost one third of prisoners who are locked up 23 hours a day are aged 18 to 24, campaigners have revealed.

Almost one-third of prisoners who are locked up 23 hours a day are aged 18-24, campaigners have revealed.

Westmeath 1-9 Offaly 0-9: Westmeath maintained their Division 3 status for another week at least with this hard-earned three-point victory over Offaly in Cusack Park, Mullingar.

Offaly 0-15 Clare 1-11: Offaly added their name to the shortlist of Division 3 promotion candidates yesterday when they overcame the concession of a late Eoin Cleary goal to snatch the last score of an entertaining contest against Clare at O’Connor Park.

Sigerson Cup Quarter-Final: IT Carlow 0-11 UL 0-10: IT Carlow withstood a barrage of injury-time UL attacks and, indeed, a half-hour stoppage in proceedings to secure a first Sigerson Cup semi-final appearance.

Dublin 0-17 Offaly 0-13: A magnificent seven points in a row from resurgent Dublin secured victory at Parnell Park and pole position in Group A of the O’Byrne Cup.

Dublin became the first team to qualify for the Bord na Móna O'Byrne Cup semi-finals after a hard earned victory over Offaly, with wins also for Maynooth University, Kildare, UCD, Meath, Westmeath, Wexford and DIT tonight.

The doubling-up of cells in the new multi-million euro Cork prison will contravene international and European rules, according to a social justice group.

A number of young players will make the step up to Senior Championship football when Kildare and Offaly meet in this evening's opening Leinster SFC quarter-final at Croke Park (throw-in 5pm).

Limerick 0-16 Offaly 1-11

Offaly 1-9 Kildare 1-12

Dublin's early dominance helped them brush Louth aside in Drogheda and qualify for the Bord na Mona O'Byrne Cup final.

Dublin made it two wins out of two in the Bord na Mona O’Byrne Cup tonight as they saw off the challenge of DCU at Parnell Park.

Calls have been made to remove 17-year-old children from St Patrick’s Institution following the release of figures revealing the scale of violence there.

DESPITE a fivefold rise in the number of people being jailed for the non-payment of court fines, laws passed 16 months ago to address the issue will not be operational for at least a year.