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France and Turkey Report Highest Prison Overcrowding in Europe
A report commissioned by the Council of Europe found that France and Turkey each have 131 inmates for every 100 prison places. The data, compiled by the University of Lausanne, covers conditions in 46 member states and dates to early 2025.
May 19, 4:18 AM·1m read1 source
Le MondeAudio version
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A report commissioned by the Council of Europe found that France and Turkey each have 131 inmates for every 100 prison places. The data, compiled by the University of Lausanne, covers conditions in 46 member states and dates to early 2025. France and Turkey recorded the highest levels of prison overcrowding among Council of Europe member states, according to the report released on Tuesday, May 19.
Officials in France later reported an even higher rate of 139.1 percent in April 2026.
Of the 51 prison administrations that supplied data, 14 reported more prisoners than available places. Croatia followed with 123 inmates per 100 places, then Italy at 121, Malta at 118, Cyprus at 117, Hungary at 115, Belgium at 114, and Ireland at 112.
Ukraine recorded the lowest rate at 50 inmates per 100 places, followed by Spain at 77 and Germany at 80. Turkey had the highest incarceration rate at 458 inmates per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by Azerbaijan at 271 and Moldova at 245.
As of January 31, 2025, the countries studied held just over 1.1 million inmates, an 8.5 percent increase from the previous year. The proportion of women prisoners rose from 4.8 percent to 5.2 percent between January 2024 and January 2025.
