Chronic overcrowding and violence are the key issues set to be discussed at the Prison Officers Association conference in Sligo later today.
The conference, which is getting underway in the Radisson Blu Hotel in Rosses Point, is also set to talk about the stark increase of assaults on prison staff across the country.
The Association has been calling for extra prison spaces for years and say the Government has failed to plan in this regard.
Deputy General Secretary and Sligo native, Gabriel Keavney, is hopeful that the Justice Minister will act on their concerns.
