The Mick Clifford Podcast, Irish Examiner: Is it time to find an alternative to prison? - Saoirse Brady
14th February 2025
On the latest episode of The Mick Clifford Podcast with the Irish Examiner, Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) Executive Director, Saoirse Brady, joins Mick Clifford to discuss the urgent need for alternatives to prison in Ireland.
In this episode, we explore:
- Some reasons why people end up in prison.
- Proven alternatives that prioritise rehabilitation.
- The impact of imprisonment on individuals, families, and communities.
- Mandatory minimum sentences.
- Why a new super-prison at Thornton Hall is not the answer to overcrowding.
If we want safer communities and a more just society, we need to rethink our approach.
Related items:
- Rehabilitated offenders should be able to move on with their lives - that includes jobs
- Lack of clarity over budget funding for addiction and mental health supports in prisons
- IPRT presented to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration on Pre-legislative scrutiny of the General Scheme: Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025
- Children's Ombudsman calls to extend youth justice sanctions to adults under 24
- Prisons today Alternative sentences for most prisoners? Podcast Interview on Near FM with Saoirse Brady
