Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 July 2023
60. Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin asked the Minister for Justice when she expects to introduce legislation in the Houses of the Oireachtas to put the Prison Service on a statutory basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34002/23]
View answerI am asking this question on behalf of Deputy Ó Ríordáin. In July of last year, the Minister announced that she was going to introduce legislation to put the Irish Prison Service on a statutory basis. When will this legislation be introduced?
I can advise the Deputy that I hope to bring my proposals to Government for the drafting of a Bill to establish the Irish Prison Service on a statutory basis with new and enhanced governance and accountability structures shortly. In fact, I hope to bring it to Cabinet in approximately two weeks. This follows Government approval in June 2022 to prepare the general scheme of such a Bill. A safe, secure and progressive prison system is a cornerstone of any well-functioning democracy. The legislative proposals that I will be bringing to Government recognise the critical importance of the Prison Service in the justice system and the need to endow it with the legal status and structures that befit an agency of such size and significance. The general scheme I am bringing to Government will cement the position of the Prison Service as a State body with defined functions.
It will provide it with best practice governance supports, and set out clear lines of authority and accountability for the management of the prison system. This includes establishing the position of director general of the Prison Service as a statutory office with formal authority and accountability to match the responsibilities of the role. Without wishing to pre-empt any Government decision, I can say that my proposals will provide for the designation of the director general as the accounting officer for the prisons Vote and as the appropriate authority for its staff within the meaning of the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 and the Civil Service Regulation Acts 1956 to 2005.
I can also advise that in line with the mandate received from the Government last year, the proposed scheme will provide for the establishment of an independent non-executive board to provide the Prison Service with guidance, scrutiny and ongoing monitoring in matters of internal governance and the development and implementation of corporate strategy. The proposed scheme will also provide for the establishment of a dedicated audit committee and other expert committees as required.
The scheme will expressly preserve the overall authority of the Minister for Justice in matters of strategy and policy, including prison numbers. The provision of prison capacity and related decisions on capital investment will remain firmly as matters for decision by the Minister and the Government.
The new structures to be proposed under the scheme will ensure that the Prison Service has the benefit of expert guidance and oversight in implementing the Government’s penal policy reform programme, in managing capital projects and in ensuring the highest standards of governance and accountability in the prison system. This will complement the primarily human rights-focused oversight already provided by external entities.
I thank the Minister for a comprehensive reply. For most of us it would seem a bit odd that such a significant service as the Irish Prison Service is not a statutory agency like most other analogous institutions in the State. The Irish Prison Service has 3,500 staff and a budget of €400 million. It is a very significant and important agency. Obviously we can debate the Minister's proposals when they are published and brought before us here. Prison and the structure of prisons and penal policy in this country are extremely important issues. In terms of the legislation, I hope the Minister will give the greatest possible time to these Houses, particularly the justice committee, to look in detail at the structure of this legislation to make sure the new director general is fully accountable and amenable to interact with these Houses
As I said, I hope to publish the Bill in two weeks time. That will give Deputies time over the summer, if they wish, to read into this and look into the detail of it. A huge amount of work has been set out, but of course this will have to go to the justice committee. There will be pre-legislative scrutiny and of course, as is the case with any Bill, I will be taking on board all recommendations and engagements as it goes through the Houses. It is a crucial part of the criminal justice system. It has a substantial duty of care to prisoners and to staff. It plays a significant role in keeping communities safe through a rehabilitation-oriented approach to prisoner management. We need to make sure that we are looking at it from the point of view of reform but also that people receive a sentence that matches the crime they have committed.
A huge body of work is under way to look at penal policy in general. That will complement this legislation, putting it on a statutory footing. I can assure the Deputy that there will be enough time and space to debate this in the House as well as in the justice committee.
Again I thank the Minister. I want to ask a question about the structure of the prison system in this country. I understand that there are 12 designated prisons. Is it the Minister's intention to have additional prisons, to enlarge any of the existing prisons or to close any of the existing prisons as part of the reform package she is going to advance?
The proposal being worked on at the moment is to expand the number of spaces we have within the existing prison capacity. The proposal is for between 620 and 650 new spaces to be delivered over the next five to six years. Some projects are shovel-ready and have plans already developed that can be moved on quickly to cater for the fact that we have a growing population. At the same time we need to make sure we have a very clear plan to look at penal policy reform and ways we can prevent reoffending. We need to make sure that while we have additional capacity we also look at how we can keep people out of prison in order to reduce that cycle. One of the previous questions that the Minister of State, Deputy James Browne, addressed was to do with the significant work of the mental health task force. This will play its part in making sure that people who should not be in prison and should be in other services are looked after. That will be considered as part of the overall capacity.
Will the Oberstown facility come within the remit of the Prison Service?
No, it will not.
