Castlerea Prison in Roscommon will be expanded within the next five years to tackle prisoner overcrowding according to the Minister for Justice
New proposals brought before cabinet this week by Minister Simon Harris call for priority capital works at four prisons nationwide.
340 men are currently incarcerated at the Roscommon Prison, with 33 inmates being accommodated on mattresses in cells.
The annual conference of the Prison Officers Association met in Galway today where they warned that Government proposals to appoint more judges this year will lead to more overcrowding.
The Justice Minister has told prison officers he plans to create space for an additional 620 inmates nationwide, with over 4,500 prisoners currently in the system.
Speaking at the POA annual conference in Galway this morning, Minister Harris outlined the plans:
'So what the government is determined to do now is to increase prison capacity. We have heard from the prison officers that even with various reforms in our prison system, we clearly need to increase prison capacity. That is why this week I brought a proposal to cabinet that ill see us looking now to expand four prisons . This includes Castlerea, Cloverhill, the Midlands and Mount Joy. These four projects will create 620 additional spaces for prisoners and will represent a very significant increase in prison capacity.'
