Rising Prison Population and Persistent Overcrowding Highlight Need for Alternatives

26th August 2026

The Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) responds to yesterday's publication of the Irish Prison Service's (IPS) Annual Report 2025, with deep concern at the persistent overcrowding, the State's ongoing reliance on imprisonment for short sentences and remand and the continued rise in prison costs.

Despite only a modest increase in committals, the prison system is now operating well above its designed capacity, with overcrowding worsening and rehabilitation opportunities diminishing. The continued use of prison for short sentences which accounted for 74 per cent of all sentenced committals — highlights once again the urgent need for a decisive shift towards evidence‑based, community‑based alternatives.

The report shows that the average annual cost of a staffed prison space has risen to €103,334, a 4.3 per cent increase on 2024. This escalating expenditure, driven by increased numbers of people detained, inflation and payroll pressures highlights once again the urgent for a move away from prison towards effective community-based alternatives, particularly for those on remand or for those serving sentences of less than 12 months.

IPRT Executive Director, Saoirse Brady, responded saying:

“The Irish Penal Reform Trust welcomes the publication of the IPS Annual Report for 2025. It paints a picture of a system under sustained and mounting pressure. Although overall committals increased by just 1.1 per cent in 2025, the daily average prison population rose by 9.6 per cent. It is clear that we need to address both the high rate of remand custody - particularly where 74 per cent of remand prisoners in 2025 did not go on to serve a sentence - and the high number of short sentences that are handed down. These are now major contributors to overcrowding in our prisons.

Prison should be a sanction of last resort, yet 74 per cent of sentenced committals were for terms of 12 months or less. These short sentences do little to reduce reoffending and come at enormous human and financial cost, risking people’s access to housing, addiction and health supports, employment and family relationships. The average annual cost of a staffed prison space has now risen to €103,334, a 4.3 per cent increase on last year. Continuing to use prison for minor offending is neither effective nor sustainable.”

Ms Brady continued:

“The IPS has added 187 new spaces this year and plans a further 65 in 2026, but we cannot build our way out of this crisis. Overcrowding is undermining rehabilitation, safety and dignity. Some people continue to sleep on mattresses on the floor — a clear breach of basic human rights.”

The situation in the Dóchas Centre is particularly concerning. Originally designed for 85 women, it now regularly holds 180 or upwards, more than double its intended capacity. While it was named as the ‘centre of hope’, hope is difficult to sustain in conditions of chronic overcrowding where access to supports, training and rehabilitation is severely restricted. Instead of committing to more spaces, IPRT echoes last year’s recommendation by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in urging the Irish government to take concrete steps to reduce the imprisonment of women as international evidence shows that prison is often an ineffective and damaging response to offending by women.

Work and training participation rates across the estate tell the same story. Only 26 per cent of people in custody engaged in work or training in 2025. In Mountjoy Male prison, participation was as low as six to eight per cent. Overcrowding makes meaningful rehabilitation almost impossible."

She continued:

“The sharp rise in immigration‑related committals — up 112 per cent in a single year to 444 cases — is deeply concerning. Prison is not an appropriate environment for people to be held on an administrative basis, and this practice places unnecessary additional pressure on an already overstretched system. Detention for immigration purposes should be exceptional, proportionate and decided on a case-by-case basis.

This report highlights the systemic pressures on the Irish Prison Service which must accept every person committed or sentenced by the Irish courts, regardless of capacity. Evidence‑based alternatives such as bail supports, supervised temporary release schemes and community sanctions must be prioritised. Probation supervision costs less than 10 per cent of a prison space and in many instances with the right supports delivers better outcomes. A fundamental rebalancing of investment is urgently needed to make our criminal justice system more effective, more humane and more sustainable.”

ENDS

 

 

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

1. Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) | www.iprt.ie IPRT is Ireland's leading non-governmental organisation campaigning for the rights of everyone in prison and the progressive reform of Irish penal policy, with prison as a last resort.
2. Prison figures: As of Tuesday 25 August 2026, Irish prisons were operating at 116 percent capacity, with 5,551 in prison custody with 299 sleeping on mattresses on the floor.
3. Irish Prison Service Annual Report 2025, published 25 August 2026, available here.
4. Key Figures: Irish Prison Service Annual Report 2025

• Increased number of committals – There were 8,798 committals to prison in 2025, a 1.1% (+94) increase on the number of committals in 2024 (8,704).
• Increased overall daily average number of prisoners - 7,354 persons were sent to prison in 2025 compared with 7,193 in 2024, an increase of 2.2% (+161). Of those persons committed, 88.1% were male and 11.9% were female.
• High number of people on pre-trial detention (remand) – of the total of 8,798 committals, 3,379 were on remand comprising 38.4% of the number of committals.
• Ongoing use of short sentences - 74 per cent of sentence committals were for 12 months or less.
• Overcrowding: The prison population reached 5,753 at year-end, up 15 per cent on 2024. 596 individuals were forced to sleep on mattresses on the floor an increase of 180% on 2024
• Increased cost of imprisonment: The average annual cost of an available, staffed prison space during the calendar year 2024 was €103,334, a 4.3 per cent increase on the 2024 cost.