(Cavan) asked the Minister for Justice what type of work performed by prisoners produced only £64 per annum as recently stated by him in the Dáil; what steps he proposes to take to make prisoners more productive and self supporting; and if he considers that the provision of interesting and productive work for prisoners would prevent further prison unrest and would better equip prisoners to return to normal society.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Prisoners' Work.
58.
The figure of £64 mentioned by the Deputy was given in reply to a question seeking the annual value per prisoner of goods produced in the manufacturing and farm departments and was calculated by dividing the estimated receipts for 1969-70 by the estimated daily average of prisoners for that year. In fact, only about half of the prisoners are employed in manufacturing or on the farm so that the value of the work produced by these prisoners is about double the figure mentioned.
The following employments are carried on in the manufacturing departments: baking, carpentry, mailbagmaking, matmaking, shoemaking, tailoring, laundry and woodcutting. Employment on lamp assembly, rug-making and slippermaking has recently been provided. From time to time efforts have been made by my Department with the Federated Union of Employers and the controlling trade union bodies with a view to getting employment of various kinds for prisoners on discharge.
I would welcome help from any quarter in this matter.
(Cavan): Would the Minister agree that bagmaking and woodcutting are very antiquated types of occupation for prisoners, if the idea is to rehabilitate them, and would the Minister consider providing work of a more modern type which would be of use to them on their release?
I think the Deputy will appreciate from my reply—if, in fact, he did not appreciate it before, though I suspect he did—that the difficulties which arise do not relate solely to the type of work demanded of or provided for prisoners. The difficulty really relates to what occurs when the prisoner is released.
(Cavan): Surely there is no employment opportunity outside the prison in bagmaking and woodcutting?
I do not wish to pursue the matter further at this stage. I think the Deputy knows what I mean.