Overcrowded prisons - One ray of hope amidst the chaos

Like so many of our essential services — health, water, schools and colleges, secondary roads, broadband and whatever you’re having yourself — our prison system is hardly fit for purpose.

Like other services it did not benefit from necessary investment in our days of plenty and now our jails are so overcrowded that 20% of prisoners are free on temporary release.

This serves no one well. Society is not properly protected from criminals. Criminals tempted to re-offend are not protected from themselves. And, almost most importantly of all, our Constitution, courts and gardaí — as well as any idea of justice or protection for victims of crime — are held up to ridicule by being ignored or undermined.