asked the Minister for Justice the names and occupational status of the members of the visiting committees attached to each of the prisons under the aegis of his Department.
Ceisteann—Questions. Oral Answers. - Prison and Probation Services.
22.
The reply is in the form of a tabular statement which, with your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I shall have circulated with the Official Report.
Following is the statement:
Members of Visiting Committees.
Mountjoy Prison:
F. V. McDonnell, P. C., businessman
Mrs. N. Donnelly, businesswoman
S. Ó Donnabháin, former Senator
W. J. Howley, businessman
F. J. Tully, retired army officer
D. B. Gilmore, retired bank official
Mrs. S. Mallagh, housewife
A. Benson, businessman
Mrs. C. Lynch, T. D.
D. Potter, businessman
W. F. Murphy, accountant
Portlaoise Prison:
V. G. Hinds, retired businessman.
C. Odlum, businessman.
D. P. Larkin, retired insurance official.
S. Clear, P.C., businessman.
T. A. Kelly, businessman.
John Hosey, P.C., farmer.
F. Aldritt, businessman.
L. Lynch, businessman.
Thomas Campion, businessman.
Limerick Prison:
C.J. Liddy, P.C., retired insurance official.
Mrs. M. Spillane, retired businesswoman.
F. Cullen, businessman.
J. Bourke, P.C., security officer.
T. J. Smalle, P.C., school attendance officer.
Miss M. O'Reilly, social worker.
M. Toomey, P.C., accountant.
M. O'Dwyer, P.C., farmer.
P. J. O'Toole, P. C., retired shoemaker.
St. Patrick's Institution:
D. J. O'Flynn, businessman.
J. A. Meehan, businessman.
J. Tunney, T. D., vocational teacher.
J. L. Campion, retired university administrative officer.
A. J. Maher, businessman.
P. F. Scanlan, businessman.
R. M. Wolfe, P. C., retired businessman.
M. O'Doherty, engineer.
Could the Minister state how qualified these people are in criminology and penology which are essential expertises for people carrying out this work?
I do not think professional qualifications of the type mentioned by the Deputy are necessary at all for these committees.
23.
asked the Minister for Justice if he will outline the recruitment methods, selection process and training undergone by those entering the prison service.
Prison officers are recruited by open competition conducted by the Civil Service Commissioners.
Some years ago a training course, consisting of lectures given by governors, was introduced. The course is being repeated for officers who have joined the service since. A policy has been adopted of sending selected officers to seminars and courses which are likely to benefit them in their work.
Governors and prison welfare officers have also been sent to study conditions abroad under schemes organised by the Council of Europe. Early this year arrangements were made for prisons staffs to participate in courses provided under the general training programme of the Department. A specialised course for officers dealing with young offenders is now in course of preparation.
Would the Minister state what are the minimum educational requirements for entry to the service?
I have not got that information here. This is a matter for the Civil Service Commissioners.
In regard to the training courses, would the Minister state whether any lectures are given by psychologists and criminologists and to what extent are these subjects covered?
Lectures have been given, as I said in my reply. Naturally, I have not got details of them.
Has the Minister any specific information on these lectures?
I cannot give the Deputy a lecture on psychology as was given to these people.
I am not asking for a lecture, I am merely asking the Minister to itemise the subjects.
I am sorry, I have not got that.
The Minister is in a less scurrilous humour today.
I must see where that bit of mud came from.
Are many people rejected on the grounds of unsuitability for these jobs?
I have no idea. These are competitive examinations conducted by the Civil Service Commissioners. If the Deputy puts down a question, I will refer it to them.
24.
asked the Minister for Justice if he will distinguish the aims of St. Patrick's Institution, North Circular Road, Dublin, and Shanganagh Castle and outline the division of functions between them.
25.
asked the Minister for Justice the objects for which St. Patrick's Institution, Dublin, was set up.
With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 24 and 25 together.
St. Patrick's Institution and Shanganagh Castle are institutions for the accommodation of youths who have been sentenced to detention. The aim of both institutions can perhaps be best expressed in the words of paragraph 4 of the St. Patrick's Institution Regulations, 1960, which provide that "an inmate shall, in so far as the length of his sentence permits, be given such training and instruction and subjected to such disciplinary and moral influences as will conduce to his reformation and the prevention of crime". Shanganagh is an "open" institution, with less rigid discipline, to which selected youths committed to St. Patrick's are transferred where it appears that the conditions there will benefit them. Youths are not committed directly by the courts to Shanganagh.
Does the Minister know what methods are used in selecting people to go to Shanganagh as distinct from St. Patrick's Institution proper?
When they come to St. Patrick's Institution they are assessed and if their conduct is good there and particularly if they are first offenders, they are generally segregated and sent on to Shanganagh.
Could the Minister tell us anything about the special training available in these institutions for after life and whether the training is accepted by the professional bodies into which these people might go when they leave to go to work?
Taking the last part of the Deputy's question first, he does not appear to appreciate that in most of these cases their stay is so short that it is not possible to train them for anything. They are there for an average of only two months. It is a misconception to think that they can be trained.
26.
asked the Minister for Justice if he will give details of the extent and type of psychiatric assessment and treatment facilities in operation in St. Patrick's Institution, Dublin.
Youths committed to St. Patrick's Institution are examined by the resident medical officer, who holds a diploma of psychological medicine. Any inmate who is mentally ill is committed to a mental hospital. In appropriate cases youths are referred to the outpatient service of mental hospitals for psychiatric assessment, and for treatment where necessary. The possibility of extending this service is under discussion with the authorities concerned.
Is the Minister aware that because some rudimentary psychiatric facilities are available in Mountjoy a judge had to send a child who needed such treatment to Mountjoy instead of to St. Patrick's Institution because the facilities were not adequate in St. Patrick's Institution?
I have no information to back up what the Deputy has suggested. As far as I know obviously disturbed youths who come to St. Patrick's are certified and sent to a mental hospital, generally to Dundrum, and others who are not certifiable but who are disturbed get treatment as outpatients in the services of the local authorities. I have no information that any judge had to send anybody to Mountjoy for the reasons stated by the Deputy.
Question No. 27.
In relation to the need for psychiatric and psychological treatment facilities, is the Minister aware of the survey carried out by the Department of Social Science in UCD which indicated that only 20 per cent of the people in St. Patrick's Institution were of average intelligence and that the rest were somewhere below that? Would he not consider that facilities should be extended in view of that?
From what I have learned about the people there I would say a far greater problem than any question of psychiatric treatment is education.
Is the Minister satisfied with the educational facilities?
They certainly badly need education. This matter is related to other questions and is under review. There are also discussions going on with the local authorities regarding an extension of the present system of psychiatric treatment.
What sort of education is available?
Question No. 27.
27.
asked the Minister for Justice if he will state the aim of the probation service.
The aim of the probation service is to assist offenders who have been placed on probation to rehabilitate themselves.
Is the Minister satisfied that the number of prison officers is adequate to meet the demands?
As I indicated to the Deputy or to other Deputies recently, we are not satisfied and the whole service is being reorganised at the moment.