| Rising cost of keeping prisoners
in jail The cost of keeping a prisoner behind bars in Ireland
is three times higher than in Britain according to figures released last
week.
The average bill for keeping a prisoner in custody in Ireland is now estimated
at ¤90,900 compared to ¤36,000 in Britain and ¤33,000
in the US.
Fine Gael’s Justice spokesman Jim O’Keeffe said the operation
of prisons needed to be urgently reviewed and questions asked about taxpayers’
value for money.
He said: “We have to ask questions on the type of prisoner being
held. I know of someone in prison today because of their failure to pay
a bus fare. I know of another person who went to prison for failing to
pay their television licence.”
The Fine Gael TD added that the unnecessary jailing of some people was
contributing to the spiralling costs.
A spokesman for the Irish Prison Service said the costs were higher than
British and US prisons because prison buildings were older, more staff-intensive
and not as efficient to run. He reasoned that with the changes in overtime
pay now implemented, a saving of up to ¤25million per annum would
be possible.
In addition, the modernisation of the prison estate and the opening of
new prisons would reduce costs.
The cost involved in holding prisoners last year and this year is expected
to decrease he said.
Justice Minister Michael McDowell has previously said that strict budget
management and overtime management would result in decreased costs.
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