The Parole Board’s annual report for 2023 states that the time between an initial application to the issuing of the final decision “usually takes in the region of 18 months”.

By comparison, the UK government says it normally takes around six months to receive a parole decision in England and Wales.

The Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) has called for investment in the Parole Board to enable it to “process and consider more applications in an efficient and timely manner”.

“This will be even more important in the context of the proposed introduction of regulations to allow the Board to consider people on determinate sentences of eight years or more,” IPRT said.

The 2023 report reveals that 75 applications for parole were reviewed over the course of the year, with eight people granted release on parole.

In almost half of the 75 decisions finalised in 2023, the Board recommended temporary release or transfer to an open prison (36 cases).