Report calls for range of prison reforms

The establishment of an independent mechanism for the consideration of prisoner complaints, the development of mother-and-baby units within the Irish prison system, a reform of the parole system, and the replacing of fines with ‘victim surcharges’ are just some of the recommendations contained in a report, titled Penal Reform and Sentencing, published yesterday.

The report by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice and Equality follows a series of meetings it held with groups and interested parties across 2017. It argues against a one-size-fits-all policy for prison environments.

It says there is “still a huge over-reliance in the prison system on closed prisons, where the regime is 16 to 17 hours per day spent in the cell”.