Brendan Howlin
Question:22 Mr. Howlin asked the Minister for Justice if he will make a statement on the recent outbreak of violence in Mountjoy Jail; and if he will outline the steps which have been taken as a consequence.
Written Answers. - Violence in Mountjoy.
Patrick McCartan
Question:47 Mr. McCartan asked the Minister for Justice if he has carried out any investigation into the causes of the riot by certain prisoners in Mountjoy Prison; if, in view of the strong criticism of conditions in the prison, set out in successive reports of visiting committees, he will outline the action taken to improve conditions in the prison; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Michael Bell
Question:127 Mr. Bell asked the Minister for Justice if he has established the reasons for the rioting in a number of prisons recently; his view on whether there is serious overcrowding in every prison; and the steps he proposes to take to remedy this situation.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 22, 47 and 127 together.
I want to make clear first in response to the question by Deputy Bell that the only prison in which rioting took place recently was Mountjoy. I should like at the outset to give a brief account of the sequence of events in Mountjoy Prison.
Just before 5 p.m. on Sunday, 15 September 1991, a group of six prisoners succeeded in breaking out on to the roof of the A Wing of Mountjoy Prison. They gained access to the attic through a ceiling in the toilet area. Apart from removing sufficient slates to gain access and to make a foothold, the prisoners were not destructive at that stage. In order to avoid the risk of serious injury to either staff or prisoners it was decided that, so long as the prisoners were peaceful, action would not be taken immediately to force them from the roof. Continual efforts were made to persuade the prisoners to come down voluntarily and one of them did so during that night.
On Monday morning, in view of the fact that the five prisoners were on the roof, a more restrictive regime than normal was operated inside the prison. Considerable unrest built up and in an attempt to defuse the unrest prison management decided to allow prisoners out of their cells for part of the afternoon. The most secure yard in the prison was used for prisoners in the A Wing who wished to go outside. Shortly after going out a large number of these prisoners attacked staff in the yard. While staff reinforcements were being collected from other areas of the prison, the prisoners in the yard in question formed a human pyramid against one of the walls and 66 prisoners used the pyramid to gain access to the roof. Some of them were assisted by "ropes" made from blankets and clothing which were let down from the roof by the roof top protesters.
Available staff, some in riot gear, were immediatley directed to the trouble area while the remaining staff concentrated on returning those prisoners who were not involved in the disturbance to their cells. Reinforcements were procured from other prisons and Garda and Army assistance was requisitioned.
The protesting prisoners proceeded to strip the roof of slates and to use them as missiles against staff, gardaí and Army personnel. The disturbance was brought under control just after nightfall. A number of prisoners and staff were injured but fortunately the injuries were relatively minor.
At no stage did the protesting prisoners make complaints of any real substance and it is not unreasonable to conclude, therefore, that the disturbance simply represented a calculated challenge to good order in the prison and to the institution of State. It was important that it should be dealt with firmly and quickly, and at this point I should like to compliment prison staff, gardaí and the Army for the tremendous job they did, in the face of real violence, to bring the disturbance under control.
Immediately after the disturbance I arranged for a review of security at the prison to be carried out. A report has been submitted to me and I have arranged for a number of recommendations to be implemented without delay, including re-roofing with deck sheeting rather than slates, general security improvements and measures to ensure that adequate water pressure will be available for the future. Other recommendations are more long term in nature and are still under consideration. Deputies will understand that because of the security content of the report it would be inappropriate to give any more details of it publicly.
Conditions in Mountjoy Prison are not unreasonable given the age of the prison and the general pressure on prison space. I have never claimed they were perfect and Deputies will be aware of the programme I have been following for steady improvements to the whole prison stock. The fact that by the end of this year over £31 million will have been spent on the prison building programme since 1987 is, I think, a clear indication of the commitment to this task. Only a week before the disturbance I opened a newly renovated wing of St. Patrick's which incidentally includes in-cell sanitation. It received the highest praise and work on the complete refurbishment of a further wing of St. Patrick's commenced recently. This kind of renovation is the prototype for all the old prison buildings. In Mountjoy itself, a new unit, due for completion next June, is being built for prisoners with communicable diseases and the building of a replacement kitchen is about to commence.
It is as well to bear in mind that it is costing over £500,000 for repairs and ancillary works in Mountjoy Prison as a consequence of the disturbance, money which could have been far more usefully spent on improving conditions for prisoners. Causing large scale destruction of the roof of the prison and serious risk to the life and limb of gardaí, prison staff and members of the Army can scarcely be regarded as a manifestation of genuine concern for the improvement of conditions in Mountjoy.