"It's a million miles from Portlaoise," said a prison officer yesterday when asked to describe the accommodation of Provisional IRA prisoners in Castlerea Prison, Co Roscommon. "They're not locked up; they're living in proper houses."
However, inside the walls of Portlaoise Prison is where 10 Provisional IRA prisoners wake up this morning after their transfer to the Co Laois facility last night.
In a surprise move, the men were transferred following an incident at Castlerea last weekend during which a prison guard was detained by the IRA prisoners.
The regime in Portlaoise will be a far cry from that experienced by the men at Castlerea.
As political prisoners they enjoyed minimum security in bungalows located on the prison grounds which are known collectively as "The Grove". Inside the prison building normal security measures apply.
Levels of supervision for the IRA prisoners were low and common prison terms like "lock-up" or "lights out" did not apply to the men in their self-contained units.
The bungalow dwellings, which it is understood were previously staff quarters at the time the building was a psychiatric hospital, are surrounded by fences and the high prison wall.
"The bungalows are effectively an open system within a closed one," added one officer.
Last weekend the prisoners commemorated the Easter Rising dressed in military garb. The parade would be accepted as "part of the ethos of political prisoner status", according to guards.
However, the smuggling in of military-style clothing would not be accepted, and it is believed an internal investigation is under way in Castlerea into how the prisoners came into the possession of this clothing.
Searches yesterday of the bungalows uncovered alcohol, a passport, £1,000 in cash and tools from the prison workshop.
Four of the prisoners were incarcerated for their role in the killing of Det. Garda Jerry McCabe. None of the 10 men is eligible for release under the terms of the Belfast Agreement.
The Fine Gael justice spokesman, Mr Jim Higgins, has raised the matter in the Dail in recent weeks. He said the prisoners had their own mobile phones and microwaves in their quarters.
"They also have access to food from the local Chinese takeaway," he added.
Mr Higgins yesterday called for a re-examination of the concessions made to IRA prisoners. When asked later if this examination was set to occur, a prison spokesman said: "Very much so."
However, the decision to transfer the prisoners to Portlaoise came as a surprise to many last night, and it remains to be seen if the move is viewed by the Government as a short-term or long-term measure.