Army camp a contender for super-prison

THE Defence Forces camp at Kilworth, Co Cork, is being considered as a possible location for the new €70 million prison for the Munster area, the Irish Examiner has learned.

The 1,200-acre camp, located close to the M8 motorway between Mitchelstown and Fermoy, has been surveyed in recent weeks by the Department of Justice and the Prisons Service with a view to assessing its suitability as the so-called “super-prison” for Munster. The new prison is expected to house as many as 500 prisoners.

However, if Kilworth were to be selected, the prison would take up only a portion of the huge site, with the Defence Forces remaining in situ on the remaining part of the facility, which is also known as Lynch Camp.