Vol. 531 No. 5
53 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his response to the report from the Irish Prison Officers Association which identifies problems at the new Women's Prison in Mountjoy, Dublin 7; if, in particular, he will respond to claims made in the report of a drugs problem in the prison; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6136/01]
To date, I have not personally received the report to which the Deputy referred. I am informed that the report was submitted directly to the director general of the Prisons Service who has studied the report and met with representatives from the Prison Officers Association last week to discuss their views and recommendations. The director general has also called to the Dóchas centre in recent days to discuss personally with staff and inmates how the centre is operating.
At this stage I would like to make a few general points on the design, regime and operation of the Dóchas centre. First, the design and consultation process for the women's prison took over two years and during this time every interested party, including staff representatives, were consulted. The resulting development represents a quantum leap in terms of working conditions for staff and living conditions for prisoners. As the most modern female prison in the western world, the Dóchas centre attracts hundreds of visits annually from prison experts and criminologists. It is regarded as a model of its kind and is currently the focus of a number of PhD studies by graduate students. The feedback from these researchers has to date been overwhelmingly positive.
Prisons are built to last hundreds of years and the bedding in process in terms of management arrangements tends to be protracted. Opened only in September 1999 the adjustment process for prisoners and staff at the Dóchas centre continues. I wish to assure the Deputy that every effort is being made to tackle the issue of drug abuse in the prisoner population. It is the case that the majority of female offenders are in prison as a result of their extreme drug dependency. Unfortunately, many will make attempts to continue their abuse while in custody. I can, however, assure the Deputy that I am fully committed to tackling the drug problem in the prison system. For example, the action plan on drug misuse and drug treatment in the prison system, which I approved in 1999, provides a detailed strategy to raise the level of treatment for drug addicted offenders and reduce the supply of drugs in the prison system.
Efforts to reduce the supply of drugs in the prison system are being pursued vigorously. In this regard, a number of measures have been introduced in recent years to curtail the smuggling into and use of illegal drugs in the prison system. These include video surveillance, improved visiting and searching facilities, increased vigilance by staff and urine testing. On occasions where visitors are found attempting to supply drugs to inmates, gardaí are called to the prison with a view to prosecuting the persons concerned. In this regard the Dóchas centre has facilities available to provide screened visits for prisoners who have attempted to or are regarded as susceptible to receiving drugs during visits.
