Prisoners are being released 'within a day' of going in as repeat offenders clog up cells
In response to a parliamentary question from Aontú leader Peadar Toíbín, the Irish Prison Service said the total number of persons currently in prison, who previously served time for a separate offence in the past, is 3,586.
The figures come from a snapshot analysis of the prison population which is conducted on the last day of each month.
The most recent analysis was conducted on 30 June 2025, which showed the total number of people in custody was 5,463.
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'I am deeply concerned over the state of our prison system, and some of the facts and figures which have been released to Aontú. It's clear our prison system isn't working when we see that two thirds of those currently in prison have previously served time for previous offences. It's becoming a revolving door system,' said Toíbín.
He said the fact that currently 66% of prisoners in Ireland are repeat offenders is very worrying, stating that the system is 'crumbling'.
'People are being released within a day of incarceration simply because there isn't enough room in the system. This is totally inappropriate and has to be a contributory factor to our rising crime rate,' he added.
Senior sources in the Irish Prison Service recently told
The Journal
that severe overcrowding has increased the risk of rioting within Dublin prisons.
It is the working belief of the Irish Prison Service that overcrowding levels are so high that a violent incident is extremely likely to take place within one of the densely populated facilities in Dublin, one senior prison service source said.
Overcrowding levels in Irish prisons have not been as high since 2009, when there were
more than 13,500 people in custody
.
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The Meath TD said that other data shows that last year some 1,033 prisoners were released on 'temporary release' within 24 hours of being sent to prison.
Through another parliamentary question answered by the former justice minister Helen McEntee, Toíbín was told that officials were selecting candidates for early release due to capacity issues in prisons.
Toíbín called on the current Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan to detail his plans to ensure a reduction in repeat offending – and to provide greater detail on the scale of the capacity problem.
'The fact that criminals are being let back into society without serving even two days in prison has huge ramifications for society, and it's leaving people in fear,' he said.
In addition, the Aontú leader said he was very concerned with the data he received also that 700 prisoners went missing from the system last year. By the end of the year 131 prisoners 'unlawfully at large' were still unaccounted for, he said.
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