The Irish Prison Service is struggling to find beds for female inmates amid a large rise in the number of women being sent to prison. Overall the prison system is at 93 per cent capacity, with 4,224 beds for 3,928 inmates. The Irish Prison Service therefore has no control over the numbers committed to custody at any given time,” a prison service spokesman said. A step-down facility for female prisoners at the end of their sentences is to be expanded in 2020 from seven to 10 beds. The plan is for a new stand-alone facility catering for 50 female prisoners and a new cell block for 125 male prisoners.

Source: The Irish Times October 14, 2019 01:18 UTC