The latest annual report from the prisons inspectorate notes that no progress was made on a new prisoner complaints system in 2021 despite five years of warnings that the existing system is “not fit for purpose”.

Patricia Gilheaney, then prisons inspector, wrote: “It is unacceptable that people in prison in Ireland are denied a fair, effective complaints system. Failure to replace the current system is indicative of the priority it is receiving.”

The inspectorate received several letters from prisoners in 2021 “expressing frustration with the complaints system, particularly (i) not knowing if their complaint was being investigated; (ii) not being kept appraised of the status of the investigation; (iii) not having an avenue to appeal an outcome; and (iv) fear of adverse consequences for making a complaint”.

The Department of Justice said preparatory work for the establishment of a new complaints system is underway, but that “implementation has been adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic”.

It said there has been progress on “staff training, the development of an integrated IT system to support case handling and a draft policy for complaints handling”, and there is ongoing engagement “with the Office of Parliamentary Council [sic] with a view to completing work on the required statutory instrument”.

All 12 prisons in Ireland were inspected last year, though the inspections themselves were “short in duration due to the situation with Covid-19”, the Department said.

Justice minister Helen McEntee said: “The inspector’s annual report for 2021 sets out the excellent work which was achieved during the year in maintaining necessary oversight of Ireland’s prisons.

“The Covid-19 pandemic affected plans for in-depth inspections of individual prisons. Instead the inspector carried out an overall inspection across all prisons of the Prison Service’s response to the pandemic.

“The inspector of prisons’ reports of these inspections recognised the good work done by the Prison Service during the pandemic and pointed to ways the response could be improved.

“The Prison Service’s constructive engagement with these issues and the resulting adaptation of their approach to Covid-19 is evidence of the benefit of strong independent oversight and its value to our prisons.”

Human rights lawyer Mark Kelly was appointed as prisons inspector in May this year after Ms Gilheaney’s abrupt resignation in February.

Mrs McEntee said: “I am sure [Mr Kelly’s] wealth of experience will be a great asset as he undertakes this important role. I would also like to thank former inspector of prisons Patricia Gilheaney who retired in February of this year and Mark Toland who served as interim inspector pending the appointment of the new inspector of prisons.”

Mr Kelly added: “This annual report is testament to the resilience of the inspectorate’s team, which inspected every prison in Ireland during the Covid-19 pandemic. We are actively monitoring the implementation of the recommendations in those inspection reports.

“I fully endorse my predecessor’s comments about the need for a root and branch review of the prisoner complaints system and swift ratification of the OPCAT. I am encouraged by the attention being given by the minister to these concerns.”