Figures from the Irish Prison Service have revealed that more than 400 people were held in prison last year in relation to immigration issues, The Irish Times reports.
A total of 421 people were committed on immigration issues, up from 342 in 2015. Most of them are held in prison awaiting deportation.
There have been 163 committals in the first five months of 2017.
However, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice told The Irish Times that plans are in place to create a dedicated facility for the detention of people awaiting deportation at Dublin airport.
Fiona Ní Chinnéide, acting executive director of the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT), said it was “wholly unacceptable” that immigration detainee are held alongside criminals.
She said detention in the Dóchas centre in Dublin was “particularly problematic” as it is “regularly overcrowded”.
A spokesperson for the Immigrant Council of Ireland called for the provision of “alternative, appropriate accommodation”.
SOURCE: Irish Legal News
