THE MAJORITY OF prisoners that still have to “slop out” are in Cork.
Figures from the Department of Justice show that as of 1 April 2014, a total of 334 prisoners lacked in-cell sanitation.
The breakdown of the figure is as follows:
The department says this is”a very substantial reduction” on the number of prisoners slopping out at the end of 2010, of which there were 1003.
The UN Committee for Human Rights was critical of prison conditions in their report released this week in which they said improvements in living conditions, treatment of detainees, overcrowding and the practice of ‘slopping out’ should be looked at “as a matter of urgency”.
In-cell sanitation
The Department of Justice said today that “the minister is committed to the ending of slopping out and improving conditions in the prison system. The Irish Prison Service published a Three Year Strategic Plan in 2012 which included a 40-month capital programme to provide in-cell sanitation in all cells and radically improve prison conditions in the older parts of the prison estate”.
The statement added that the modernisation of Mountjoy prison continues with the refurbishment of the A, adding that the B and C wings are now complete.
“Work has commenced on the refurbishment of the D Wing. With the closure of D Wing to facilitate refurbishment, every prisoner in Mountjoy now has access to in-cell sanitation”.
There is also a development plan for Limerick Prison, which is at an advanced stage with a view to the commencement of development works there on a phased basis in late 2015.
Work on the construction of a new prison in Cork commenced in January 2014 and is due to be completed in 2015.
The department said this will end slopping out in Cork Prison and effectively throughout the prison estate.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say