JCFJ give evidence to Oireachtas Joint Committee

June 10, 2008 in General, News

Tony O'Riordan SJ, director of JCFJOn Wednesday last, the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice (JCFJ) gave evidence to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice in relation to a planning motion for the new prison at Thornton Hall. JCFJ Director, Fr Tony O’Riordan told members of the Committee of TDs and Senators, that the new prison, with a design capacity of 2,220 prisoners, was a means of imprisoning many more people -increasing prison capacity by almost 150%- rather than replacing existing buildings. He noted the implications for penal policy as a whole: “It reinforces our inability to use imprisonment as a measure of last resort, and potentially limits both the commitment to developing alternatives to prison and, indeed, the resources available for such alternatives.”