asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the efforts being made to have Irish prisoners in British jails returned to Northern Ireland.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Return to N.I. of Irish Prisoners.
2.
The Government have made representations to the British authorities on behalf of individual prisoners requesting transfers, when it was judged that there were convincing reasons justifying such requests.
The British Government have indicated their willingness in principle to consider particular requests for which there are compelling humanitarian reasons and have agreed to transfers in certain cases. I am conscious of the hardship experienced by the families of some of these prisoners and I will continue to take up cases which seem to me to have merit.
Will the Minister state how many of those representations have received a favourable response from the British authorities and what is the percentage of Irish prisoners in British jails?
I am not sure what the Deputy means in the second half of his supplementary question. In the ten-year period since 1975 four prisoners were sent back to Northern Ireland and in the past week one prisoner, Shane O'Doherty, was sent back.
Does the Minister accept that is a reasonable response over a ten-year period and that it shows goodwill on the part of the British authorities? Will the Minister not accept that British soldiers convicted of offences in Northern Ireland are returned to prisons in Britain and does he not think there should be a reciprocal arrangement? I ask him to make a case for all Irish prisoners who wish to come back to prisons in Northern Ireland. He stated in his reply that he was aware of the cost and inconvenience to relatives. I put it to him that Irish relatives have to travel at great inconvenience and expense and they may not gain admission to the prisons. I had that experience this summer when I almost did not gain admission to Brixton prison. If the Anglo-Irish agreement is to work, both countries must consider this aspect on humanitarian grounds.
I accept what the Deputy has said, that this must be considered on humanitarian grounds. While I have sympathy for him in that he nearly missed his visit to Brixton prison, I have far more sympathy for the mothers, brothers and sisters who go to England to see a relative and find when they arrive that he has been transferred to another prison. I am told there are good security reasons for doing this and for not informing relatives before they leave Ireland that the prisoners have been moved. I do not think the comparison made by the Deputy between British soldiers being transferred back to England and the people who are convicted in England is a valid comparison in every case. In some instances there are genuine humanitarian reasons why prisoners who are convicted of crime in Britain should be returned to Northern Ireland. Where I am satisfied there are genuine humanitarian reasons I will follow the matter up, as I have done in a number of cases. Of course, I wish I had more success.
Is the Minister aware of the existence of a draft international agreement on the return of prisoners to their homeland where they so desire? Will he say what discussions his Government have had with the United Kingdom Government on entering into the spirit of this draft international agreement?
I do not think this agreement has any relevance to the question tabled by Deputy Gallagher. Where it would have relevance is in respect of the return of Irish prisoners to this jurisdiction. We have not signed the convention. The Government are considering it. There are practical considerations involved here. Deputies must remember that there are many Irish people in prisons in Britain and if they all applied to come home at the same time there would be a problem here. We would not have any responsibility in regard to Northern Irish prisoners in Britain.
The question I had intended to ask has been covered by Deputy Collins. Has the Minister been in touch with the British authorities to ensure that Irish prisoners would be located in prisons convenient for families travelling from here to visit them? Relatives might have to cross to Liverpool, for instance, and then travel to Scotland.
I am not sure how practical the Deputy's suggestion is but I can see difficulties immediately. What might be a convenient port from the point of view of Ireland might not be convenient to the prison or prisons. I will approach the British Government on the matter.
Would the Minister pursue his representations to ensure that relatives in Ireland would be informed when Irish prisoners are being transferred? Would he give an assurance to the House that the transfer of Northern Irish prisoners to Northern Ireland would be placed on one of the first agenda for meetings of the conference under the new agreement?
The agenda were laid out in the communique issued at Hillsborough after the signing of the agreement. There are sensible security reasons for not informing anybody when prisoners are being moved.