The Junior Minister Kathleen Lynch says sending women to prison for petty offences is the "most expensive remedy of all".
The Inspector of Prisons, Judge Michael Reilly, published his interim report yesterday, in which he said jailing women for offences - often related to drug and alcohol addiction - is unacceptable.
He said overcrowding is leading to tension among prisoners and the slightest thing can spark a major altercation.
The Minister of State at the Department of Justice Kathleen Lynch says she will meet with the Justice Minister Alan Shatter later today to discuss the report and its recommendations:
She spoke to Newstalk's Pat Kenny show about the need for penal reform after we've examined what factors are leading to womens' imprisonment:
The Minister says there is an obligation on the State to treat those it imprisons properly, particularly when they have been given very short sentences.
Minister Lynch conceded that there are not enough community-based alternatives to imprisonment.
160 women are currently in jail.
Liam Herrick is the Executive Director of the Irish Penal Reform Trust - he told our reporter that more capacity is being generated:
