The Irish Prison Service has confirmed it will soon introduce a special prison unit for remand prisoners charged with drug trafficking offences.
Under the plan, certain prisoners who are facing charges of possession of drugs with intent to supply will be kept separate from other inmates in a special unit so as to make it more difficult for them to continue their businesses while in jail.
Minister for Justice Michael McDowell has approved the move as part of a number of new measures that aim to combat drug trafficking in Ireland.
Speaking to ireland.com, Sean Sullivan, a spokesperson for the Irish Prison Service, said that it was finalising operational details.
"It is the will of the Tániste that the isolation unit be introduced, and we are working to have it up and running as soon as possible," said Mr Sullivan.
The first unit, which will be based at Cloverhill prison in West Dublin, will hold 20 remand prisoners.
Mr Sullivan said a plan to open similar units in other prisons, including Portlaoise, is being considered.
But the new plan has been met with scepticism by Opposition parties. Labour spokesman on Justice, Brendan Howlin said more information was needed to establish whether the initiative would prove useful in combating drug trafficking.
"We need to see specifics about what is proposed, how will this be implemented, to whom will it apply and how extensive across the prison system it is going to be implemented," he said.