Watchdog warns of overcrowding ‘burden’ at prison

A prison watchdog has warned of the “tremendous burden” on staff in trying to manage tensions caused by overcrowding at Cloverhill Prison — the scene of a riot two weeks ago, during which a foreign national inmate was stabbed.

The Cloverhill Prison Visiting Committee “forcefully reiterated” previous warnings regarding the security, as well as health and safety, implications resulting from overcrowding at the remand jail in west Dublin.

In its 2014 annual report, the committee urged the Irish Prison Service “to be more proactive in dealing with this potentially dangerous situation”.