Corradino Correctional Facility is now among Europe’s most overcrowded prisons, according to a new Council of Europe report examining prison populations across the continent.

The report found that Malta’s prison population surged from 83 inmates per 100 available places in 2024 to 118 inmates per 100 places in 2025, placing Corradino among nine prison systems in Europe facing severe overcrowding.

Only Türkiye and France recorded worse overcrowding figures among larger countries surveyed.

The study also revealed that around 37% of inmates in Corradino are currently awaiting sentencing, above the European average of 30%.

According to the report, criminologists often view high levels of pre-trial detention as a possible indicator of slow court procedures, lack of resources or overreliance on remand detention, although the Council of Europe noted that circumstances can vary from country to country.

Malta also registered one of the highest proportions of women inmates in Europe, with women making up 8% of the prison population, the third highest rate recorded in the study.

Meanwhile, foreign nationals account for 51% of inmates at Corradino, placing Malta among the countries with the highest percentage of non-citizen prisoners in Europe.

The report forms part of the Council of Europe’s annual Penal Statistics on Prison Populations survey covering prison systems across member states.