Penal PolicyPenal Policy
IPRT believes that there is a need for a clear and coherent Irish penal policy, which sets out both the strategic goals of the penal system and the function of each element of the system.
Our vision is for an Irish penal system which respects the rights of all stakeholders in that system and where imprisonment is a sanction of last resort. In general, we believe that the emphasis of our penal system needs to move towards focussing on diverting young offenders and at risk groups away from offending behaviour at the entry points to the penal system.
IPRT believes that penal policy should be underpinned by evidence of what has been demonstrated to be effective both in Ireland and in other jurisdictions. Effectiveness in this context is taken to mean the approaches to offending behaviour which reduce the risk of re-offending and which are seen to have the greatest social and economic benefits while minimising potential social and economic harm.
Key issues for IPRT in relation to the development of Irish penal policy at the present time include challenging aspects of the proposed prison building programme, and highlighting the continuing expansion of our prison population.
Cutting crime: the case for justice reinvestment (England & Wales)
A new report from a Commons select committee has identified that the current prison building programme is unsustainable, and the cash would be better spent on rehabilitation and prevention so as to cut crime. Read more
MPs say £4.2 billion plan for prison expansion is a costly mistake
An article by Alan Travis in the Guardian outlines how the Commons select committee report on justice describes how money would be better spent on rehabilitation and prevention to cut crime as opposed to expanding the prison building programme. Read more
IPRT Position Paper 6: Planning the Future of Irish Prisons 
A Position Paper setting out the main issues relating to planning for the future of the prison system including the size of the prison population. Read more
IPRT Position Paper 5: Penal Policy with Imprisonment as a Last Resort
A Position Paper setting out IPRT's vision for a penal system where imprisonment is used only as a last resort. Read more
"Do Better Do Less" - report from the Commission on English Prisons Today 
A landmark report into the prison system has been published today. The report of the Commission on English Prisons Today takes a radical look at the purposes and limits of a penal system and how it should sit alongside other social policies. Read more
IPRT Position Paper Thornton Hall
A Position Paper which sets out our concerns about the present proposals and makes recommendations as to how the present project, if it goes ahead, can better reflect human rights standards, international best practice and the principles of progressive penal reform. Read more
IPRT sets out objections to Thornton Hall
In an opinion article in the Irish Examiner, IPRT has set out some of its principal objections to the proposed new prison at Thornton Hall Read more
Putting Prison in its Place
This address, given to the Annual Conference of the Irish Association for the Study of Delinquency, argues that the building of Thornton Hall prison is "at odds with the requirements of necessity, parsimony and proportionality ... and reinforces the idea of prison as the centre of the penal system rather… Read more