Prisons

The criminal courts are expected to experience further disruption this week as a result of Covid-19 outbreaks in the prison system. The Irish Prison Service (IPS) said on Friday that it is dealing with active outbreaks in Cloverhill and Mountjoy, while Midlands Prison has been brought under control.

Ireland's treatment of prisoners will be examined by the UN Human Rights Council working group as part of Ireland's third universal period review (UPR) later today. States will put questions to Ireland this afternoon on its performance across a number of human rights treaties. The Irish delegation w

The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has withdrawn its appeal of a significant High Court judgment which found that the service must provide reasonable accommodation to disabled prison officers. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission provided legal representation to Robert Cunningham in taking the

A new house of worship has been officially opened in Magilligan Prison following a delay linked to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Prison healthcare in Northern Ireland is characterised by underfunding and delays, with a £4 million budget boost needed just to bring it in line with funding levels in England and Wales, a long-awaited review has found. The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) has published its

A government review of penal policy has been expanded to include remission and how it is applied to prisoners. At present, prisoners sentenced to a definite term qualify for one quarter remission on the basis of good behaviour. Those serving life sentences, sentences for the enforcement of court ord

A harrowing incident in which a baby died in Europe's largest women's prison, with the 18-year-old mother giving birth in her cell alone despite repeated calls for help, "should never have happened", a watchdog has said. The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) for England and Wales yesterday publi

The third and final volume of a legal academic's trilogy on the history of Irish political prisoners from 1848 to 2000 has been launched in Dublin.

The Supreme Court has ruled that a prison was not liable in damages to an inmate who went on hunger strike following complaints about his living conditions. The inmate had been granted €5,000 in damages by the High Court after it was held that the prison had taken six weeks to make a decision o

The number of prisoners on remand in Northern Ireland rose to a record high last year as the Covid-19 pandemic paralysed the courts system. The remand population increased by nearly 11 per cent to 545 for the 2020/21 financial year, the highest level since reporting by financial year began in 2014/1

A long-awaited review into the care of vulnerable people in Northern Ireland's prisons has been completed and a report is due to be published next week. The review was first announced in 2016 after a series of deaths in custody and was subsequently passed in December 2018 to the Regulation and Quali

An investigation will take place following the death of a prisoner at HMP Maghaberry. The death, which took place on Saturday 28 August, is "not being treated as Covid-related", the Northern Ireland Prison Service said.

A repatriation system for Irish prisoners abroad should be put in place "as a matter of urgency", a charity has recommended. The Irish Council for Prisoners Overseas (ICPO), which is in touch with around 1,100 Irish citizens in prisons in 30 countries around the world, said the Covid-19 pandemic had

A long-awaited review of prison healthcare has been delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The health needs assessment was due to be completed in June 2021 but is still being finalised, The Medical Independent reports.

The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has been urged to develop a national policy on the safe custody of transgender men and women following concerns about trans prisoners being held in prolonged solitary confinement. Prisons inspectors said two trans women prisoners in Limerick Prison are living "an extre