asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he will make a statement on the closure of Shanganagh Prison; his plans for the provision of a new juvenile detention centre at Clondalkin, County Dublin; the type of prisoner it is proposed to hold at the centre; if his attention has been drawn to the concerns expressed by local communities and public representatives at the proposal, in view of the fact that there are already two prisons in the area; and the reason Shanganagh was not used for the development of the new centre. [2932/03]
Written Answers. - Prison Accommodation.
30.
Shanganagh Castle was opened in 1969 as an open detention centre for males aged between 16 and 21 years of age. The centre, which stands on grounds of 24 acres, had accommodation for 60 inmates. It had been increasingly difficult to identify young male offenders suitable for this type of open prison accommodation. Shanganagh Castle had an average offender occupancy of 30 inmates in 2001 and this fell again last year, with as few as 12 inmates being detained there late last year. In addition, the full implementation of the provisions of the Children Act 2001, will mean that 16 and 17 year old inmates must be completely segregated in the prison system, resulting in a further drop in those offenders who might have been found suitable for transfer to Shanganagh Castle.
A number of initiatives were taken to increase the number of inmates in Shanganagh Castle. Among these were the implementation of new procedures for dealing with assessments of candidates for the centre. Many offenders in this age group were either unsuitable or were not eligible for a transfer to Shanganagh Castle for various reasons. In addition, offenders were often unwilling to transfer to the centre.
In view of the very considerable decline in the number of young offenders found suitable for transfer to Shanganagh Castle in recent years, the Irish Prisons Service established a group to examine the options for its continued use as a detention centre. While the report of the group identified an increase in the upper age limit of offenders as one option, it also recognised that:
If none of the recommended options were considered viable then, as the current regime at Shanganagh Castle cannot be justified on operational or financial grounds, the closure of the castle and the subsequent disposal of the site will have to be considered.
I carefully considered this report, the centre's viability and the options available for its future use. I decided to close Shanganagh Castle in order to contribute to the control of costs in the Prisons Service, to make more effective use of Prisons Service staffing and other resources, and to release funds through the sale of Shanganagh Castle to be used, subject to the agreement of the Minister for Finance, for other more productive prison related purposes. The order to close the centre was made on 16 December 2002 and took effect from 20 December 2002.
In relation to plans for a juvenile detention centre, the Prisons Service placed public advertisements in October 2001 seeking suitable sites for the location of a juvenile detention facility for young offenders aged 16 to 17 years, as part of the process of implementing the Children Act 2001.
On foot of these advertisements submissions regarding 25 properties were received by the Prisons Service. In addition, another 15 or so sites in state ownership, including all existing prison properties, were considered giving a total of approximately 40 locations assessed with detailed feasibility studies completed by the Office of Public Works.
The Office of Public Works recommended that the site referred to by the Deputy was the most suitable location of those examined and, on that basis, a planning notice under part 9 of the Local Government Planning and Development Act 2000, was served in December 2002. This involved placing public advertisements as well as site notices regarding the proposed development. The comments received on foot of these advertisements are now being evaluated in consultation with the Office of Public Works.
The Deputy will be aware that it has been clearly and consistently stated in the past week, in both Houses of the Oireachtas, that I have not yet made a conclusive decision on the location of the proposed development. The proposal is one which does not come from me but rather one which has been put to me. I require more time to examine all the options open to me and hope to come to a decision on this matter shortly. I have asked the Prisons Service to review all possible alternatives. The Deputy can be assured that I will take into account all views expressed to me by local residents, South Dublin County Council, local representatives and through the Houses of the Oireachtas before reaching a decision in the matter.
While I examine all of the options open to me in this matter the advice available to me at this stage is that the nature and structure of the current facilities at Shanganagh Castle would require massive investment to convert them into a suitable, secure, modern juvenile detention centre. The cost of converting whole buildings, including the listed 18th century Shanganagh Castle structure, to meet modern prison design far outweighs the cost of building on a greenfield site.