As part of the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) Strategic Plan 2023-2026, one of our main goals is to campaign for a progressive criminal justice system that upholds human rights. Engagement with the media plays a large part in that as we discuss our evidence-based research, advocate for people in prison, and work to change attitudes and challenge misconceptions about people in the criminal justice system.
Below you will see a list of most of IPRT's media features including recordings of radio discussions, links to TV appearances, and access to written articles and opinion pieces. You can also listen back to long-form recorded discussions with podcast hosts on our Podcast webpage.
12th March 2024
In March 2024, Saoirse Brady, Executive Director of the Irish Penal Reform Trust, joined Peter Leonard BL and Mark Tottenham BL on the Fifth Court podcast, Ireland's legal podcast that won Law Society...
26th February 2024
On Newstalk Breakfast, IPRT Executive Director Saoirse Brady responded to reports on the pilot project to train prisoners to retrofit homes being underway at two prisons and spoke about the secondary punishment that people with convictions can face when trying to find employment.
20th February 2024
IPRT comments in the RTÉ story covering the report by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP) which has highlighted that mental health care needs are not being fully or satisfactorily met in any of the seven prisons it inspected, with conditions repeatedly being described as "degrading".
20th February 2024
The Irish Examiner writes about the publication of a report by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP) Thematic Inspection: An Evaluation of the Provision of Psychiatric Care in the Irish Prison System February – March 2023. IPRT Executive Director, Saoirse Brady, responds.
19th February 2024
IPRT discusses the issues with finding work with convictions and employer attitudes to people with convictions after IPRT launched a report "The Secondary Punishment".
15th February 2024
People who have served a prison sentence for a criminal offence are entitled to believe that once the sentence is completed they have paid their debt to society. That does not appear to be the case. New research shows that there are huge barriers to ex-prisoners finding employment and that the past simply won’t leave them alone. Damien Quinn was one such person, who had to fight hard to rebuild his life once he finished his sentence. He and Irish Penal Reform Trust Executive Director Saoirse Brady are this week’s guests on the podcast.
8th February 2024
IPRT comments on its report "The Secondary Punishment": A Scoping Study on Employer Attitudes to Hiring People with Criminal Convictions, which shines a light on employer attitudes towards hiring people with convictions.
8th February 2024
Saoirse Brady, Executive Director of Irish Penal Reform Trust and Damien Quinn founder of Spéire Nua, spoke on RTÉ Radio One Drivetime about the new research published by IPRT that shows barriers remain for people with a history of convictions to finding work.
8th February 2024
IPRT and Damien Quinn reflect on the barriers to people with convictions finding work and the new report on employers. attitudes to hiring people with convictions.
6th February 2024
IPRT comments on the impact imprisonment has on children and families of people in prison, details about prison visits and other issues arising from overcrowding in prison.
Respect for rights in the penal system with prison as a last resort.