SerpApi.Org
A record of more than 1,000 prison inmates in Northern Ireland are now being held on remand.
The vast majority of the remand prisoners are in the north’s largest jail, which is operating far beyond normal capacity.
Close to half of all inmates were behind bars but not convicted on one day this month, with the fallout from the six-month barristers strike adding to stubbornly high numbers over many years.
It is believed 40% of those being held will not be sentenced to any time in prison following a conviction, acquittal or the charges being dropped.
It is also likely that other remand prisoners, when convicted, will receive sentences of less than the time spent waiting for a day in court.
On July 1, there were 1,013 remand prisoners being held, most in Maghaberry Prison outside Lisburn, the largest prison and where Jeffrey Donaldson is being held ahead of sentencing. This represents more than 48% of the total prison population of 2,125.
Two weeks ago, a total of 1,456 were being held in Maghaberry, which is the absolute maximum capacity if all space in the facility is used.
The normal comfortable operating number is less than 1,000, according to a 2022 inspection report.
While the criminal barristers’ withdrawal of services, which ended last month, is being blamed in part for the sharp hike, the number of foreign nationals being denied bail is also a factor.
According to the Department of Justice, on June 1, 17% of all inmates were born outside Britain or Ireland, yet they make up under 5% of sentenced prisoners. Courts are more likely to refuse bail due to heightened flight risk.
The spike in numbers on remand only adds to what has been a stubbornly high average blamed on a slow moving justice system.
Over the last several years, around 40% of inmates were not yet convicted, a far higher percentage than the 16.5% in England and Wales and around 20% in the Republic.
According to 2023 figures, a quarter of the prison population spent over six months on remand, 15% over a year and 5% two years or more. The average is about three and a half months.
James Corrigan, acting chief inspector of Criminal Justice in Northern Ireland, said the use of remand in certain circumstances “is central to keeping our community safe”.
But any rise presents additional challenges for the prison service, Mr Corrigan said.
A CJI 2023 report, which called for a bail act, showed a significant number of remand cases did not result in a sentence of imprisonment, including because of time served.
This results in “missing opportunities to utilise prison-based rehabilitation programmes, to meaningfully address offending behaviour or reduce the risk of offending in the future”, Mr Corrigan said.
“This can leave victims feeling let down as they can see no punitive element when defendants are released from court or shortly after.”
Around 42% of individuals committed on remand did not receive a custodial sentence at the end of their cases, according to the DOJ.
The high number of prisoners “centres around the glacial speed of our justice system in Northern Ireland,” said Upper Bann MLA Doug Beattie.
“Although it has been exacerbated by the barristers strike in recent months the underlying issues are the speed of justice,” Mr Beattie said.
“There is a fine line between protecting the public by putting an individual on remand or allowing them to be placed on bail. I have always fallen on the side of caution and made protecting the public the priority,” said Upper Bann MLA Doug Beattie.
The independent unionist added: “However, if we could take tangible measures to speed up justice, make pleading guilty at the earliest stage more appealing instead of allowing credit for late guilty pleas.”
He added that a “better monitored tagging system could lead the numbers falling”, which the MLA described as “important because remand prisoners do not have to undertake any form of rehabilitation as they are not guilty of a crime until proven in court”.
In a recent answer to a written question, Justice Minister Naomi Long said officials in her department “engage regularly with the judiciary on a range of issues to ensure that they are fully apprised of high prison population and I am confident that they are fully aware of the challenges that presents.
“However, in such engagement, I am bound to respect the independence and autonomy of the judiciary who make sentencing and remand decisions in accordance with the law, and the facts and evidence presented to the court,” she added.
The DoJ was contacted for further comment.
