PRISONS ACT 2015

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR No. 57/2015
• Year: 2015

Number 57 of 2015
PRISONS ACT 2015
CONTENTS
PART 1
Preliminary and General
Section
1. Short title, commencement and collective citation
2. Definitions
3. Repeals and revocation
4. Expenses
PART 2
Closing of Saint Patrick’s Institution
5. Definitions (Part 2)
6. Power of Minister to close Saint Patrick’s Institution
PART 3
Amendments Consequential on Closing of Saint Patrick’s Institution
7. Amendment of section 212A(1) of Defence Act 1954
8. Amendment of Criminal Justice Act 1960
9. Amendment of section 50(a) of Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961
10. Amendment of section 3(1) of Extradition Act 1965
11. Amendment of Prisons Act 1970
12. Amendment of First Schedule to Juries Act 1976
13. Amendment of Criminal Justice (Community Service) Act 1983
14. Amendment of section 5(1) (c) of Data Protection Act 1988
15. Amendment of section 47(8) of Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2002
16. Amendment of Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005
17. Amendment of section 98 of Criminal Justice Act 2006
18. Amendment of section 2(1) of International Criminal Court Act 2006
19. Amendment of section 1 of Electoral (Amendment) Act 2006
20. Amendment of section 2 of Prisons Act 2007
21. Amendment of section 2(1) of Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Act 2008
22. Amendment of section 32(4) of Freedom of Information Act 2014
PART 4
Closing of Prisons
23. Amendment of section 2 of Prisons Act 1933
PART 5
Miscellaneous
24. Taking of certain persons from prison for the purposes of deportation or removal from the State
25. Amendment of section 41 of Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851
Acts Referred to
Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 (No. 39)
Criminal Justice (Community Service) Act 1983 (No. 23)
Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Act 2008 (No. 7)
Criminal Justice (Temporary Release of Prisoners) Act 2003 (No. 34)
Criminal Justice Act 1960 (No. 27)
Criminal Justice Act 2006 (No. 26)
Criminal Justice Administration Act 1914 (4 & 5 Geo. 5 c. 58)
Criminal Law (Jurisdiction) Act 1976 (No. 14)
Data Protection Act 1988 (No. 25)
Defence (Amendment) Act 2007 (No. 24)
Defence Act 1954 (No. 18)
Electoral (Amendment) Act 2006 (No. 33)
Extradition Act 1965 (No. 17)
Freedom of Information Act 2014 (No. 30)
Immigration Act 2004 (No. 1)
Immigration Act 1999 (No. 22)
International Criminal Court Act 2006 (No. 30)
Juries Act 1976 (No. 4)
Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851 (14 & 15 Vict., c. 93)
Prevention of Crime Act 1908 (8 Edw. 7, c. 59)
Prisons Act 1933 (No. 51)
Prisons Act 1970 (No. 11)
Prisons Act 1972 (No. 7)
Prisons Act 2007 (No. 10)
Prisons Acts 1826 to 2007
Public Health (Tobacco) (Amendment) Act 2004 (No. 6)
Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2002 (No. 6)
Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005 (No. 28)
Number 57 of 2015
PRISONS ACT 2015
An Act to provide for the closing of Saint Patrick’s Institution; to make further provision for the closing of prisons; for those purposes to amend the Prisons Act 1933 and to provide for consequential amendments to certain other enactments; to make provision, in respect of certain persons who are serving sentences of imprisonment, for the purposes of deportation or removal from the State; to amend the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851 ; and to provide for related matters.
[25 th December, 2015]
Be it enacted by the Oireachtas as follows:
PART 1 Preliminary and General
		Short title, commencement and collective citation
1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Prisons Act 2015.
	(2) Section 3 and Parts 2 and 3 shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.
	(3) Parts 1 and 2 , section 11 and Part 4 and the Prisons Acts 1826 to 2007 may be cited together as the Prisons Acts 1826 to 2015.
		Definitions
2. In this Act—
	“Minister” means the Minister for Justice and Equality;
	“Saint Patrick’s Institution” means the institution called and known as “Saint Patrick’s” and situate at North Circular Road, Dublin.
		Repeals and revocation
3. (1) The following enactments are repealed:
	(a) the Prevention of Crime Act 1908 ;
	(b) sections 10 and 11 of the Criminal Justice Administration Act 1914 ;
	(c) sections 12 and 13 of the Criminal Justice Act 1960 ;
	(d) sections 6 and 7 of the Prisons Act 1970 ;
	(e) section 1 (1) of the Criminal Law (Jurisdiction) Act 1976 .
	(2) The repeal of the enactments specified in subsection (1) shall not affect the lawfulness of—
	(a) the detention of any person sentenced to detention in, or
	(b) the remand of any person remanded to,
	Saint Patrick’s Institution pursuant to any of those enactments before the coming into operation of this section.
	(3) The Saint Patrick’s Institution Regulations 1960 ( S.I. No. 224 of 1960 ) are revoked.
		Expenses
4. The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.
PART 2 Closing of Saint Patrick’s Institution
		Definitions (Part 2)
5. In this Part—
	“prison” means a place of custody administered by or on behalf of the Minister (other than a Garda Síochána station) and includes—
	(a) a place of detention provided under section 2 of the Prisons Act 1970 , and
	(b) a place specified under section 3 of the Prisons Act 1972 ;
	“temporary release”, in relation to a person, means the release of the person from a prison or Saint Patrick’s Institution for a temporary period in accordance with a direction given by the Minister under section 2 of the Criminal Justice Act 1960 .
		Power of Minister to close Saint Patrick’s Institution
6. (1) The Minister may by order (in this Part referred to as the “closing order”) direct that Saint Patrick’s Institution shall be closed on and from a specified date.
	(2) When the Minister makes the closing order, he or she may also, if he or she so thinks fit, by the same order direct—
	(a) that any person who, immediately before such closing, was to be committed to Saint Patrick’s Institution—
	(i) to be remanded in custody, or
	(ii) to serve a sentence of detention,
	by virtue of an order made or warrant issued by a court that was in force upon such closing but which had not been executed before such closing, shall be committed to such prison as is specified in the closing order for that purpose;
	(b) that any person who, immediately before such closing, was on temporary release from Saint Patrick’s Institution, shall be on temporary release from such prison as is specified in the closing order for that purpose.
	(3) If the closing order contains a direction under paragraph (a) of subsection (2), a reference in an order made or warrant issued by a court referred to in that paragraph to Saint Patrick’s Institution shall, on and after such closing, be construed as a reference to the prison specified in the closing order under that paragraph, and the order made or warrant issued by the court shall have effect accordingly.
	(4) Where, on or after the coming into operation of the closing order, a person referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (2) is committed, pursuant to the order made or warrant issued by a court concerned, to the prison specified in the closing order under that paragraph, such person shall be deemed to be in lawful custody.
	(5) If the closing order contains a direction under paragraph (b) of subsection (2), a person referred to in that paragraph shall, on and after the coming into operation of the closing order, be regarded as being on temporary release from the prison specified in the closing order under that paragraph, and the direction concerned given by the Minister under section 2 of the Criminal Justice Act 1960 in respect of the person shall have effect accordingly.
	(6) Where, on or after the coming into operation of the closing order, a person referred to in paragraph (b) of subsection (2) is, following the expiry of the period of temporary release concerned, detained in the prison specified in the closing order under that paragraph, such person shall be deemed to be in lawful custody.
	(7) When the Minister makes the closing order, Saint Patrick’s Institution thereby directed to be closed shall be closed in accordance with that closing order.
	(8) The Minister shall cause a copy of the closing order to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made.
PART 3 Amendments Consequential on Closing of Saint Patrick’s Institution
		Amendment of section 212A(1) of Defence Act 1954
7. Section 212A (inserted by section 61 of the Defence (Amendment) Act 2007 ) of the Defence Act 1954 is amended in subsection (1) by deleting paragraph (b) of the definition of “imprisonment”.
		Amendment of Criminal Justice Act 1960
8. The Criminal Justice Act 1960 is amended—
	(a) in section 1, by deleting the definition of “Saint Patrick’s Institution”,
	(b) in section 2 (amended by section 1 of the Criminal Justice (Temporary Release of Prisoners) Act 2003 ), by substituting the following subsection for subsection (11):
	“(11) In this section—
	(a) references to a person who is serving a sentence of imprisonment shall be construed as including references to a person being detained in a place provided under section 2 of the Prisons Act 1970 and ‘sentence of imprisonment’ shall be construed accordingly, and
	(b) references to a prison shall be construed as including references to a place provided under the said section 2.”,
	(c) in section 3(1), in the...