719. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of prisoners who were granted temporary release in each of the past five years; of those, the number who committed a criminal offence while on temporary release; the breakdown of such offences by category for example, violent, property and drug-related; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [71952/25]

Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration: I can assure the Deputy that this Government remains focused on reducing re-offending, including by diverting people, where appropriate, from the criminal justice system and ensuring the underlying causes of offending behaviour are addressed.

The number of prisoners who have been granted temporary release over the period 2021 to-date in 2025 is outlined in the table below. The Irish Prison Service (IPS) uses temporary release to support the reintegration of prisoners back into their communities following a period of imprisonment. All applications for temporary release are assessed on a case-by-case basis in respect of all relevant information available and the safety of the public is paramount when decisions on temporary release are made.

The duration of temporary release can range from a few days at the end of a sentence to weeks. Before a final determination is made to grant temporary release, a number of factors are considered including inter alia:

• the nature and gravity of the offence to which the sentence being served by the person relates
• the potential threat to the safety and security of the public should the person be released
• the risk that the person might commit an offence during any period of temporary release
• the risk of the person failing to comply with any of the conditions of temporary release
• any report or recommendation made by the Governor, An Garda Síochána or the Probation Service.

All temporary releases are subject to a number of stringent conditions. Any person who breaches their conditions may be arrested and returned to prison immediately by the Gardaí, or they may be refused a further period of temporary release.

I am advised by An Garda Síochána that the information requested by the Deputy regarding those who have committed a criminal offence while on temporary release is not available in the format requested.

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) regularly publishes detailed statistical information on both prison and probation re-offending rates. The latest CSO study of one and three year prison reoffending rates, can be found in the Prison Re-offending Statistics 2022 report published on www.cso.ie in September 2025. The prison re-offending statistics measure the level of recorded re-offending by offenders who have been released from prison after having served a custodial sentence. One-year prison re-offending rates for individuals released in 2022 indicate that 44% re-offended within a year after being released from custody, a rise of 2%. The highest rate of reoffending was amongst those who had been convicted of public order offences or theft. Overall, there has been a reduction in one-year prison re-offending of 6% since 2012.

Probation Reoffending Statistics for 2020, which were published in November 2024, showed that just over one-quarter (27%) of offenders who received a probation order in 2020 re-offended within a year, a rise of 2% when compared with the equivalent rate for 2019 (25%). This was the second lowest annual re-offending rate measured since 2008, when the first estimates of probation re-offending were calculated. The increase was mostly due to a rise in the re-offending of people who received probation for offences relating to controlled drug (23%) or road traffic (22%) related offences.

While there are no quick fixes for reducing reoffending, evidence shows that different targeted interventions are needed. This can be seen in the Review of Policy Options for Prison and Penal Reform, which included increasing the use of alternatives to custodial sanctions where appropriate, and the recommendations of the High-Level Taskforce to consider the mental health and addiction challenges of those who come into contact with the criminal justice sector.

Education and training is available in all prisons, from basic literacy and numeracy education up to third level qualifications. Work Training in prisons also provides a range of purposeful activities in areas such as catering, laundry, industrial cleaning and industrial skills. Further, the Prison Education Taskforce aims to ensure greater alignment between prison education and work training and the tertiary education system to support people in prison to have education and training opportunities while in custody that support their rehabilitation and access to employment post-release.

Through integrated sentence management the IPS assists people in prison during their sentence and to plan for their release by identifying and sourcing appropriate supports to address risks of reoffending and needs. The IPS works with Tosú to provide two main operational services, the ‘Gaining Access to Training and Employment’ Service and the Resettlement Service. The IPS website www.irishprisons.ie/prisoner-services/reintegration/ may be of interest to the Deputy in this regard.

Many of the supports offered to offenders post-release are made available by state agencies and Departments external to the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration and often mirror those available to the general public. The Deputy may wish to direct queries regarding particular supports and services to the Departments' responsible for these services.

Budget 2026 provides an 11% increase in funding for the Probation Service, allowing for the recruitment of 100 additional staff. This additional funding will also be used to increase the use of supervised community sanctions in the criminal courts, expand restorative justice services, and expand supervised temporary release schemes nationally.