Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 26 Jun 2002

Vol. 553 No. 6

Written Answers. - Drugs in Prisons.

Seán Crowe

Question:

243 Mr. Crowe asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the action he proposes to take to facilitate those inmates who wish to live in a drug-free environment in view of the proliferation of hard drugs in the prison system; and his Department's programme to facilitate and encourage addicts already in the system to adopt a drug-free lifestyle. [14948/02]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

As has been indicated in An Agreed Programme for Government published last month, by the end of 2002, I intend to publish a plan to end all heroin use in Irish prisons. This plan will provide for the availability of treatment and rehabilitation for all who need them and the introduction of compulsory drug testing for prisoners where necessary.

The National Drugs Strategy 2001-2008 endorsed the approach already in place in the Prisons Service to tackle the problem of drug abuse in the prison system. An action plan on drug misuse and drug treatment in the prison system was approved in 1999. This advocated a broad-based approach to raise the level of treatment for drug addicted offenders. The 1999 action plan, which built on an agreed policy between the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and the then Eastern Health Board, advocated the expansion of detoxification facilities, more drug-free areas and the provision of methadone maintenance. It is my intention to continue with the implementation of the action plan and to step up the current pace of work to tackle the scourge of drugs in prison in line with the undertaking referred to above in the new programme for Government.

The national steering group, established in 1999 to implement the action plan continues to meet under the chairmanship of the Director General of the Prisons Service. It is pursuing a multi-disciplinary approach to the drugs problem with substantial input from the health sector, especially the Eastern Regional Health Authority.

There has been considerable progress in recent months in regard to the work of the steering group. This includes: a drug service co-ordinator from the Eastern Regional Health Authority is now in place, based at Mountjoy Prison; an assistant governor took up the position of training officer for drug treatment work by prison grades in October 2001. He will deliver training programmes designed to enhance and further professionalise prison officers involved in interpersonal work with prisoners undergoing drug treatment; there is now extensive access to methadone maintenance for prisoners in the Dublin area which is a complete transformation of the situation which existed up to 2000; designated drug free wings have already opened in St. Patrick's Institution in November 2000, in Wheatfield Prison in April 2002 and others are due to open at other prisons over the coming months. A drug-free wing at Mountjoy training unit has been in place since 1996; some 61 qualified nurses are in place to administer methadone programmes in the prisons and to monitor for any breaches of the programmes, along with their general duties. A further ten nurses are in training since May 2002 and will take up duty in the prisons shortly; additional probation and welfare officers have also been authorised to work in this area. A senior probation and welfare officer has been recently assigned to drug treatment within the Mountjoy complex; a number of other appointments are planned by the health boards in the Eastern Region for positions, both full-time and part-time, in the prisons in the Dublin area. These include consultant psychiatrists, physicians and addiction counsellors. Advertisements to recruit the latter staff will appear in the national newspapers later this month; over 400 offenders have completed Mountjoy Prison's drug treatment programme. This is a six week course involving detoxification, where necessary, intensive counselling and psychological support for participants; there are extensive links between Cork prison and the local drugs task force and, through funding from the latter, two full-time addiction counsellors have been appointed to work in the prison; during 2001, at the request of the Director General, a special linkages group, the prison liaison group, was established between the governors of the main Dublin prisons and voluntary sector services who work with drug dependent people in the community, and I should also mention, for the Deputy's information, that in excess of 350 offenders are held in a drug-free environment on a daily basis in the State's three open centres, the training unit and the drug-free wings in St. Patrick's Institution and in Wheatfield Prison. My predecessor had directed the Prisons Service to provide drug-free wings in all closed institutions by summer 2003 and it is my intention to continue with this policy.

A number of measures have been introduced in recent years to curtail the smuggling into and use of illegal drugs in the prison system including video surveillance, improved visiting and searching facilities, increased vigilance by staff and urine testing. The introduction of screened visits in Cloverhill Remand Prison and the new Midlands Prison and the erection of nets over the yards of Cork Prison and St Patrick's Institution have further strengthened this policy.

An Agreed Programme for Government also contains a number of other commitments in relation to tackling drug abuse including several which are relevant to the prisons and I am proceeding with the implementation of these commitments.