Council of Europe Human Rights Watchdog Calls for Urgent Action Amid Concerns of Inhuman and Degrading Treatment in Irish Prisons - IPRT

24th July 2025

MEDIA RELEASE

The eighth report on Ireland from the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Degrading Treatment (CPT), published today (Thursday 24 July 2025), confirms and amplifies many of the concerns that the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) has consistently voiced over the past two years. In particular, the Committee outlines chronic overcrowding right across the prison estate and the detrimental impact that this has on the lives of people deprived of their liberty, which may amount to inhuman and degrading treatment, absolutely prohibited by the European Convention on Human Rights. In response to the Committee’s findings, IPRT is calling on the Government to implement the recommendations of the CPT as a matter of urgency.  

Responding to today’s publication of the report, IPRT Executive Director, Saoirse Brady stated: 

“The CPT paints a stark picture of chronic prison overcrowding and its impact. Notably the Committee visited Ireland before we crossed the unprecedented threshold of 5000 people in prison. Given that we continue to break records almost weekly in terms of escalating prison numbers, conditions have only deteriorated further to an unacceptable and unsafe level. Once again, the CPT has repeated its call for the State to ratify the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT). At a time when the situation across the prison estate is so dire, IPRT supports the Committee’s recommendation to put in place and invest in preventative mechanisms to proactively identify and address the root causes of ill-treatment in Irish prisons”. 

In May 2024, the Committee visited five prisons including both female prisons. In all of the prisons it visited, it observed that “three or four prisoners were held in cramped, squalid spaces with insufficient ventilation”. As well as noting the increase in inter-prisoner violence, the CPT expressed its “deep concern” about “the deterioration of physical safety” particularly noting an increase in allegations of deliberate ill-treatment by prison staff since 2019 and excessive use of force by staff, particularly in Cloverhill and Limerick prisons outlining incidents of serious concern. It also raised the alarm around “a deeply troubling pattern of deaths in custody” including preventable deaths and the failure on the part of the Irish Prison Service to complete adequate reviews and implement systemic learning. 

IPRT’s Legal Policy and Public Affairs Manager, Niamh McCormack highlighted: 

“It comes as no surprise to IPRT that the Committee has been so critical of the State. While the Committee thanked the State for its cooperation during the visit, it also noted its disappointment that action has not been taken to implement many of its long-standing recommendations. In particular it called out overcrowding,  widespread use of restricted regimes and segregation, the inadequate provision of mental healthcare for prisoners, and the lack of suitable accountability mechanisms, namely the long-awaited update of the complaints procedure.  

The Committee’s analysis of the overcrowding situation as pervasive across the estate, negatively impacting all aspects of prison life and posing safety concerns for both prisoners and staff alike chimes with IPRT’s assessment of the situation. It also echoes recent concerns raised by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons, the Prison Officers Association and the Government’s own Prison Overcrowding Response Group. None of this is new but the Committee leaves no room for doubt that the cumulative impact of these conditions, may well amount to inhuman and degrading treatment and that overcrowding turns prisons into human warehouses. 

The IPRT recognises that the Irish Prison Service is treading water but it is clear that in the current context it is simply not possible for it to comply with basic human rights standards. However, responsibility does not fall solely on the prison authorities as the Government must take clear and immediate action to reduce the prison population and alleviate pressure on the system. IPRT supports the Committee’s recommendation that when a prison has reached capacity, no one else should be admitted. Reducing the population in pre-trial detention and expanding the availability and encouraging greater use of community-based sanctions, where those are appropriate, is a clear way to do this safely and effectively. Legislation to address these key issues must be prioritised”. 

The Committee particularly highlighted the situation of people with mental health issues in prison without access to adequate healthcare, women in prison, mothers and babies in prison and the treatment of people held on restrictive regimes for both security and protection, including the treatment of a transgender woman. It also noted the problematic use of Closed Supervision Cells (CSCs), including the routine practice of stripping prisoners naked and placing them in thin, rip-proof ponchos, which appeared to be a punitive measure. The Committee also highlighted the impact of staff shortages on mental health and addiction teams when the prisons are already overstretched and cannot meet demand. 

In contrast, the CPT’s visit to Oberstown Detention Campus was largely positive, although it flagged the need for greater reintegration measures for young people “and for the Irish authorities take the necessary measures, at the legislative level, to adopt a comprehensive regulation on the application of restrictive measures which may be imposed at children detention schools, whether as disciplinary or preventive measures, in compliance with international standards”. 

IPRT welcomes the CPT’s comprehensive report and will continue to advocate for the implementation of its clear recommendations. 

ENDS  

For all media enquiries, contact Niamh McCormack, IPRT Legal Policy and Public Affairs Manager, on:    

M: +353 86 043 3060        E: communications@iprt.ie      W:  www.iprt.ie  

NOTES FOR EDITORS:  

1. IPRT is responding to the publication of the Committee on the Prevention of Torture report on its official 2024 visit, published on 24 July 2025.
   
   The CPT’s most recent visit to Ireland took place from 21 May to 31 May 2024. The delegation examined the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in prison and their conditions of detention, including Castlerea Prison, Cloverhill Remand Prison, Limerick Female Prison, Limerick Male Prison, Mountjoy Female Prison (Dóchas Centre) and Mountjoy Prison High Support Unit. In addition, they assessed the situation of persons deprived of their liberty in the Central Mental Hospital and young people in Oberstown Detention Centre.
   
   Particular attention was paid to the measures taken by the authorities to implement recommendations made by the Committee after its previous visits, including as regards women in prison, prisoners held on restricted regimes, the provision of mental healthcare and deaths in custody. Full details of the visit are here (opens in new window).
   
   The CPT reports on visits to Ireland along with the Government’s response are published here (opens in new window).
   
   Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) prepared and submitted a detailed briefing in advance of the periodic visit to Ireland to inform the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) (opens in new window). Given the confidential nature of the CPT’s work and the sensitivity of some of the matters raised in the briefing, neither the briefing itself nor an overview of its content will be made publicly available.
    
2. Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) | www.iprt.ie
   
   IPRT is Ireland's leading non-governmental organisation campaigning for the rights of everyone in prison and the progressive reform of Irish penal policy, with prison as a last resort.  
    
3. Prison figures:
   
   On Wednesday 23 July 2025, Irish prisons were operating at 119 percent capacity, with 5,531 people in prison custody with 503 sleeping on mattresses on the floor.