Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 30 Jun 1998

Vol. 493 No. 3

Written Answers. - Prison Drug Treatment Services.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

383 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the extent of drug treatment and prevention facilities which are located in, or under the jurisdiction of his Department; the initiatives, if any, he has taken to augment or improve these facilities in recent times having regard to the facilities available in other jurisdictions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15816/98]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. O'Donoghue)

The abuse of drugs within the prison system is largely confined to the committal institutions in the Dublin area. As the State's main committal prison, Mountjoy, has a large daily throughput of prisoners, many of whom have long histories of drug abuse which they try to maintain while in custody. Most of the other prison institutions are relatively drug free.

A number of measures have been introduced in recent years to curtail the smuggling in and use of illegal drugs in the prisons. These include video surveillance, improved visiting and searching facilities, increased vigilance by staff and urine testing. It has been my policy to continue with these efforts to reduce the level of drugs in the prison system.

Efforts to eliminate the supply of drugs coming into our prisons are not enough on their own. The education, treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicted offenders is important and to this end there are specially designed information programmes addressing the risks associated with the misuse of drugs in place in all of our prisons.

Extensive treatment facilities are in place in Mountjoy prison to address the drug abuse problem there. During 1997, approximately 1,650 inmates benefited from the standard 14 day drug detoxification programme operated under medical supervision in the prison. In addition, about 130 inmates have been admitted to the drug treatment unit which opened in Mountjoy prison in July 1996. This facility provides chemical detoxification and a therapy programme and is the first of its kind in a prison environment in this State. It is modelled on similar hospital based units in the community.

I am satisfied that the various treatment options available to drug addicts in prison are making a positive contribution to both the fight against drug abuse generally in Irish society today and to the health of the individual inmates who have the motivation to deal with their addiction. I accept that more work is needed to extend the range of drug treatment facilities in the prison system and my Department is currently examining the feasibility of further expansion of drug treatment options generally. Progress in this respect is constrained for the present by the serious limitations imposed by overcrowding in our committal prisons. This constraint will be greatly lessened as the prison building programme proceeds.