Almost 150 prisoners on mattresses on floors as overcrowding persists at prisons in Portlaoise

Despite calls for immediate action on overcrowding last November both prisons in Portlaoise have been operating at 120% capacity or above every day this year. 

Statistics on the Irish Prison Service website show there are 120 inmates on mattresses on floors in the Midlands Prison which is operating at 120% capacity today.  Portlaoise Prison is at 135% capacity and there are 28 prisoners on mattresses. 

The high security Portlaoise Prison, which has a bed capacity for 225 prisoners but held 303 today, has remained above 134% occupancy every day this year. The larger Midlands Prison has a bed capacity of 891 and was catering for 1,068 inmates today(Thursday, January 8).

The Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP), Ireland’s independent body responsible for inspecting prisons, investigating deaths in custody and monitoring conditions of detention, called for immediate action last November when it published its annual report for 2024.

The report, relying on figures and inspections from 2024, highlighted serious and systemic challenges across Ireland’s prisons, including overcrowding, mental health needs, and conditions that fall short of human rights standards.

It noted the 31 deaths in prison custody in 2024, was the highest number since the OIP’s investigative role began in 2012, and was an increase of more than 50% on 2023.  

The report said contributing factors include overcrowding, mental health pressures, and gaps in the provision of healthcare services. The Inspectorate also identified serious deficiencies in risk assessment and complaints handling across prisons.

Speaking in November, Chief Inspector of Prisons, Mark Kelly, said, “overcrowding is not only a matter of numbers, it is a root cause of worsening mental health outcomes, restricted regimes, unacceptable living conditions for prisoners, and poor working conditions for prison staff. Currently, Ireland’s prison population exceeds more than 5,600, of whom almost 500 are being obliged to sleep on mattresses on the floor. In Ireland, in 2025, a significant number of people in prison are being held in conditions that can only be described as inhumane and degrading.”

Mr Kelly continued: “These are clear symptoms of a prison system that has breached its capacity. No comparable jurisdiction has ever succeeded in building its way out of overcrowding, and immediate action is required, at the highest political levels, to address this ongoing crisis”.

The Inspectorate’s Annual Report highlighted inspections completed in 2024, which include and inspection of the Midlands Prison in June and July 2024. 

It stated that the Midlands Prison was operating at 112% capacity at the time of inspection, with major concerns around overcrowding and restricted regimes. 

The report noted inhuman and degrading conditions. “Overcrowding led to an average of 31 men sleeping on mattresses on the floors during the inspection, in conditions described as degrading. Occupants often ate meals on the floor next to unpartitioned toilets.”

In relation to restricted regimes and solitary confinement it stated that: “Some prisoners on restricted regimes were offered only 30 minutes of daily yard time and 30 minutes for shower/cell cleaning. Many declined the yard time, meaning they could spend 23.5 hours daily in their cells, which was observed to impact their mental health. There was limited planning to reduce the number of men on a restricted regime.”

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