New home for young offenders criticised

The decision to house young offenders in a special section of Mountjoy prison is being criticised.

The Irish penal reform trust says, mixing teen criminals with adult offenders will educate them in more serious crime, rather than rehabilitate them. It says the move is in breach of international law.

Chairperson Valerie Bresnihan says there is too much focus on security and punishment in the Irish penal system.