Ireland had the 8th most overcrowded prisons in Europe last year
Seán McCárthaigh
Ireland had the 8th most overcrowded prisons in Europe last year, according to a new report by an international human rights organisation.
The annual report on penal statistics in prisons by the Council of Europe identified Ireland as one of 15 countries in Europe where prisons have more inmates than places available.
The Council of Europe – a leading human rights watchdog – has expressed concern at increasing overcrowding in prisons across the continent and claimed prison overcrowding remains a critical challenge in a third of European countries.
Overall, the number of inmates per 100 places available increased from 93.5 in 2023 to 94.9 last year on average across Europe.
The figures show Ireland had 105 prisoners for every 100 places available in 2024 which ranked it in joint 8th position with Sweden.
The Council of Europe described the situation in Irish prisons as “moderate overcrowding” which poses “considerable challenges to daily prison management and service provision.”
It listed Ireland as one of 13 countries which experienced a significant increase in its prison population between January 2023 and January 2024.
The figures show that the number of inmates in prisons in the Republic increased by 5.4% over the 12-month period and that Ireland’s prison population has now grown by 17 per cent since 2005.
Severe overcrowding in prisons was recorded in six countries – Slovenia, Cyprus, France, Italy, Romania and Belgium.
The report revealed that there were over 1.02 million prisoners detained in prison in the 46 member states of the Council of Europe last year – representing a median prison population rate across Europe of 105 inmates per 100,000 inhabitants.
The incarceration rate in Ireland is 90 prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants.
Compared to the rest of prisons in Europe, Ireland has a disproportionately high number of people imprisoned for assault and battery offences and sexual offences including rape but relatively few for robbery and drug offences.
Approximately 21 per cent of prisoners in the Republic are in pre-trial detention compared to the European average of 28 per cent of prisoners who are not serving a final sentence.
One of the authors of the report, Professor Marcelo Aebi, head of the SPACE research team from the University of Lausanne, remarked: “Overcrowding seriously undermines the living conditions of the prison population and the rehabilitation efforts of the prison administrations.”
Prof Aebi said data highlighted the importance of sentence duration as a lever to manage prison overcrowding.
“In addition to promoting alternative sanctions to imprisonment, reducing sentence lengths, especially for non-violent and low-risk offenders, can be a powerful tool for lowering incarceration rates,” he added.
The average age of prisoners in the Republic is 38 years – just above the European average of 37 years.
The average length of imprisonment for prisoners in Ireland last year was 7.2 years compared to the European median of 8.7 years.
The report shows that staffing levels in Irish prisons are good with 1.2 prisoners per staff – below the median for Europe of 1.5 inmates per staff.
However, Ireland was also classified as one of 20 countries with a high rate of prisoner escapes relative to the prison population.
The figures show there were 12.4 prison escapes per 10,000 inmates in the Republic in 2023 – almost four times the European median of 3.5 escapes per 10,000 prisoners.
The report shows that foreign nationals represent a substantial share of the prison population across Europe but their distribution is very uneven between countries.
It reveals that 16% of prisoners in Ireland last year were non-citizens – the same figure as the median for Europe.
Just over half of all non-Irish nationals (52 per cent) in prisons in the Republic are from other EU member states.
The proportion of foreign nationals in prisons ranged from 94 per cent in Monaco to one per cent in Romania.
The report also shows Ireland has a relatively large proportion of elderly prisoners with 3.7% of all inmates over 65 years – the 10th highest rate in Europe where the average is 3.1 per cent.
The Council of Europe said a growing number of elderly prisoners was already placing pressure on prison infrastructure and healthcare budgets in a trend that was likely to intensify in the coming years
“Although the proportion of elderly inmates remains modest, the implications for prison management are substantial. Older prisoners often present complex health needs, including chronic illnesses, cognitive decline and reduced mobility,” the report noted.
It added: “Their presence raises operational challenges related to accessibility, staffing, and care standards, as well as ethical and legal questions about the continued detention of individuals who may no longer pose a significant threat to public safety.”
