The Social Democrats launched their election manifesto, For the Future, on Tuesday 19 November 2024. Below, IPRT analyses relevant proposals contained in the manifesto.
Work to establish and deliver a safe and effective model of restorative justice.
IPRT strongly supports the establishment of restorative justice programmes, which hold people who have offended accountable while promoting healing and reparation for victims. Restorative justice offers a constructive alternative to punitive measures, with evidence showing it reduces reoffending and improves outcomes for both victims and perpetrators. IPRT recommends prioritising the integration of restorative justice at all stages of the criminal justice process, including diversion, sentencing, and reintegration. While the national provision of restorative justice is needed, it is also vital that the role of restorative justice is cemented in legislation so that courts are encouraged to refer cases to restorative justice at all points in the criminal justice process.
Pursue non-custodial sanction as the default for minor non-violent offences attracting a sentence less than six months. Imprisonment should generally be considered a sanction of last resort, or where the Courts conclude a person cannot be managed safely within the community.
This proposal aligns with international best practice and IPRT’s long-standing advocacy for reducing reliance on short custodial sentences. It also aligns with public sentiment; in recent public attitudes polling commissioned by IPRT, 81% of people in a nationally representative survey stated that it was important to them that the next government prioritise alternatives to prison for non-violent offences.
Non-custodial sanctions such as community service orders, probation supervision, and restorative justice are more effective at reducing reoffending, less costly to the State, and avoid the negative social impacts of imprisonment. IPRT strongly welcomes the ambition that “imprisonment should generally be considered a sanction of last resort” but would call for it to be incorporated into law. Furthermore, IPRT encourages that non-custodial sanctions (particularly community service) are considered as the default for less serious offences attracting a sentence of less than 12 months.
Ratify the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention Against Torture (OPCAT) and establish a National Preventive Mechanism.
The ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT) would be a crucial step forward in the protection of rights through the provision of independent oversight of all places where people may be deprived of their liberty, including prisons, psychiatric facilities, nursing homes, and Garda stations. While we support the legislative action proposed, as highlighted in our election manifesto priorities, IPRT reminds all parties that OPCAT can be ratified immediately and make a declaration postponing the implementation of their obligations, as allowed under Article 24 of the Protocol. This would provide a clear timeline for ensuring the legislation is implemented within the lifetime of the new government and would signal a real commitment to accountability.
See a dedicated section of the IPRT website on the ratification of OPCAT.
Create an inspectorate under OPCAT that is financially independent from the Department of Justice, and accountable to the Oireachtas.
IPRT strongly welcomes the proposal to create a financially independent inspectorate. Financial as well as functional independence from the Department of Justice are critical to maintaining public confidence in the transparency and impartiality of inspection and oversight. Accountability to the Oireachtas ensures that any inspectorate can operate free from political interference while contributing to better oversight of detention facilities. This follows the existing statutory accountability model used for the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. Adequate funding and clear statutory powers are essential to enable the inspectorate to carry out its mandate effectively.
Ensure mechanisms and funding exist so that Rehabilitation and Reintegration Services effectively support offenders before and after release from prison.
Supporting people in prison and upon release is essential to reducing recidivism and promoting successful reintegration into society. IPRT strongly supports this proposal, emphasising the need for a whole-of-government approach that addresses housing, employment, addiction, and mental health supports. Investments in rehabilitation services within prison, combined with pre-release planning and post-release supports, are crucial to breaking the cycle of reoffending. Labour market initiatives and Housing First programmes tailored to people leaving prison should also be prioritised to address structural barriers to reintegration.
Resource and pilot a National Clinical Programme for Dual Diagnosis within the prison system.
The treatment of people with mental health issues has been deemed among the “most pressing issues within Irish prisons”. As such, a political commitment in this area is much needed and welcomed. IPRT commends the commitment to improving mental health services within the prison system, particularly the commitment to piloting a dual diagnosis (the occurrence of a mental health condition alongside substance misuse) programme in prison. This was recommended by the High Level Task Force in 2022, and the HSE and the Irish Prison Service are working to roll-out a pilot in Cork Prison in 2025, after securing funding in Budget 2025.
Ensure that proper Workforce Planning around mental health and other areas is conducted, so that we are training a sufficient number of people to fill the roles needed.
Addressing workforce shortages in mental health services is crucial for both the prison population and the broader community. Many people in prison experience significant mental health challenges, and the lack of adequate resources compounds these issues, resulting in long waiting lists. Proper workforce planning would enable better in-prison mental health services and facilitate earlier interventions, in turn reducing the likelihood of offending or reoffending. IPRT supports this commitment and urges its implementation as part of a broader strategy to ensure sustainable funding, training, and recruitment for prison and community mental health services.
Increase investment in Housing First to enhance wraparound social and health supports for people with experience of the criminal justice system. At a minimum, people leaving prison should be supported with pre-release planning for accommodation needs.
Housing First is an evidence-based approach that provides stable housing as a foundation for addressing other social and health needs. IPRT strongly supports this proposal, which closely reflects our election priorities and our identified areas for investment in Budget 2025. Pre-release planning is particularly important to ensure people leaving prison have immediate access to safe, suitable accommodation. IPRT also emphasises the need for coordinated supports, including mental health, addiction treatment, and employment services, to address the interconnected challenges many people face after release.
In a report submitted to the Minister for Justice in March 2024 by officials from across the criminal justice sector (released under FOI in October 2024), it was noted that there were a ’high number of prisoners in prison custody who would otherwise be released if it were not for their homeless status’. This is completely unacceptable.
See IPRT’s response to the publication of the Prison Overcrowding Response Group report.
Develop an interdepartmental strategy to support children with a parent in prison.
Parental imprisonment has significant emotional, social, and economic impacts on children, who are often referred to as the "hidden victims" of imprisonment. IPRT strongly welcomes this commitment having advocated in our election priorities for such a whole-of-government approach. Collection and analysis of data on the number of children impacted by imprisonment will be crucial to its success, along with dedicated resources for investment outside of the justice system, such as school-based supports and community initiatives to mitigate the negative effects of parental imprisonment.
Establish a Consultative Council to provide high level advice on future penal policy.
IPRT has long advocated for the establishment of a Penal Policy Consultative Council to ensure that penal reform is guided by evidence-based research and expert input. This Council has been recommended since 2014, first in the Strategic Review of Penal Policy and was committed to in both the 2020 Programme for Government and the 2022 Review of Policy Options for Prison and Penal Reform. The Council’s non-political nature would serve to insulate penal policy from populist pressures and would provide a forum for cross-sector collaboration, bringing together government officials, academics, practitioners, and people with lived experience of the justice system.
Incentivise people in prison to participate in self-development programmes by introducing increased remission.
Remission is a practical and impactful measure to incentivise people in prison to engage in education, vocational training, and rehabilitative programmes. Currently, standard remission allows people in prison to earn up to a quarter off their sentence for good behaviour, with enhanced remission offering up to a third in certain cases. However, data suggests that access to enhanced remission has decreased in recent years, raising concerns about fairness and accessibility. IPRT emphasises the importance of ensuring that all prisoners have equal access to enhanced remission, regardless of their location, sentence length, or individual circumstances. Furthermore, while a recent review did not recommend any increase to remission rates, IPRT would encourage the incoming government to reopen this review and reconsider increasing the length of remission rates as more generally this could offer immediate respite to overcrowding for people in custody, prison staff and management.
Examine the suitability of the current prison model with a view to improving rehabilitation and lowering recidivism.
Prison is damaging to individuals, families and communities, and therefore should be reserved for the most serious offences. Where prison is the only appropriate response, the harmful effects of imprisonment must be minimised through decent and humane prison conditions, access to meaningful activity, and normalisation. IPRT welcomes any work to ensure that rehabilitation if a core aim of the penal system in Ireland, towards reducing recidivism and thus supporting safer communities.
Make greater use of community service overseen by probation officers, in place of frequent warnings or suspended sentences.
IPRT agrees that there should be increased use of community service orders (CSOs). However, CSOs should be used as a direct alternative to imprisonment, to avoid the unintended effect of ‘net-widening’, drawing more people convicted of low-level offences deeper into the criminal justice system. IPRT urges that a suite of other alternatives to prison be explored, including probation supervision, community courts (building on and, where suitable, expanding the Drug Treatment Court) and restorative justice approaches.
See IPRT’s Community Service in Ireland for more detail on the benefits of community service compared with short-term sentences.
See also IPRT’s Progress in the Penal System (2022) – Standard 2: Imprisonment as a last resort (p.33).
Pursue policies that acknowledge the importance of diverting persons with mental health difficulties away from prison and into mental health services, where appropriate.
Diversion away from prison for people with mental health difficulties is a cornerstone of effective and humane justice systems. Many people in prison have unmet mental health needs that are exacerbated by imprisonment. Diverting these people into community-based mental health care, rather than criminalising their behaviour, aligns with best practices and evidence showing that treatment in the community results in better outcomes for individuals and public safety. IPRT strongly supports this commitment and recommends expanding mental health diversion programmes at all stages of the justice system, including through enhanced Garda training, mental health courts, and pre-trial diversion initiatives. A comprehensive range of recommendations relating to the diversion of people with mental health issues from prison system, or in some cases the criminal justice system, were put forward in the Final Report of the High Level Task Force (2022).
Acknowledge that where such diversion is not possible, it is crucial to mitigate the negative impact of incarceration on mental health and ensure access to tiered mental health services and supports within the prison.
For people with mental health challenges who remain in prison, the availability of adequate care is essential to mitigating the harms of imprisonment and supporting rehabilitation. Tiered mental health services, ranging from counselling and group therapy to specialised psychiatric care for people with higher-level needs, should be standard across all prisons. Realisation of this commitment would need adequate resourcing, provision of specialised training, continuity of care and reducing environmental stressors (including overcrowding).
The preamble to the section in the manifesto on penal reform notes that “poverty and inequality are key underlying causes of crime”, which is a welcome holistic view of the factors influencing offending behaviour. The recognition that “greater attention must be paid to improving mental health services, youth services, access to education, and availability of affordable housing” in a section focused on penal reform is laudable.
For IPRT’s 10 Priority Proposals for General Election Manifestos 2024, click here.
Respect for rights in the penal system with prison as a last resort.