Vol. 575 No. 3
51 Mr. Cuffe asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his plans to bring forward improvements in prison conditions in Mountjoy and other locations in view of recent disturbances at Mountjoy Prison, and disturbing reports of prison conditions at this jail and other jails throughout the State. [28331/03]
There has been a significant surge in new prisons construction and in prison refurbishment in recent years with the result that prison conditions generally have improved considerably. I acknowledge that further improvement at certain prisons is required and I am determined to proceed with it as quickly as resources will allow.
There are two possible options in respect of the replacement of the outdated prisoner accommodation at Mountjoy Prison. The first is to redevelop the prison on the existing site. This would involve the demolition and reconstruction of existing buildings while the prisoners remained in situ. The second option is to relocate the prison to a greenfield site. Exploration of the economics and feasibility of these options is under way and it is not possible to say when a decision is likely to be made regarding which option to pursue. I hope it will be made sooner rather than later. The possibility of acquiring suitable lands in the Dublin area and surrounding counties will have a major bearing on the decision.
A new wing providing 100 spaces will come into operation early in 2004 at Limerick Prison. A tender for a new wing at Portlaoise Prison, which has been approved by the Department of Finance, is expected to issue in January 2004. The wing will replace C block at the prison which is in a poor state of repair.
Is the Minister aware that the male prison at Mountjoy is one of the most historic within the system as well as one of the three worst within the State? I understand that outline refurbishment plans were drawn up but that these were rejected on cost grounds. I hope suitable alternative plans will be drafted.
Can the Minister clarify whether he intends to move the prisoners at Mountjoy Prison to a more distant location? Does he not think it preferable to maintain a prison at a central location to ensure that visitors are not adversely affected by having to travel long distances to see their loved ones?
Is the Minister aware of the unsanitary conditions prevailing at Mountjoy? In the basement level up to seven people are confined to each cell for up to 23 hours of any given day. What short-term plans does the Minister have to improve conditions at Mountjoy? This prison is over 150 years old and inflicting undue hardship on prisoners and staff.
I assure the Deputy that I toured the Mountjoy complex at great length and in great detail a couple of months ago. It was after the summer recess of the Houses of the Oireachtas. My aim was to examine conditions for myself as it is sometimes easier to understand something when one sees it with one's own eyes. I am fully acquainted with the conditions at Mountjoy and I fully agree with the Deputy that in the male prison they are substandard and unsatisfactory. As the Deputy will appreciate, the Mountjoy complex has a number of elements including Mountjoy Prison, the training unit and the Dóchas centre for women prisoners. In the last facility conditions are very good by comparison with others. While the fabric of the building which houses the training centre is ageing, conditions there are remarkably superior to those in the main Mountjoy Prison.
It is one of the terrible ironies of Irish life that when Mountjoy Prison was handed over to the State, there was a crude form of in-cell sanitation. This was removed as a security measure in the early 1920s. I regard it as wholly unacceptable that slopping out continues to be the norm at a number of Irish prisons. I was surprised when I visited Cork Prison to see that a portion which had been built in the 1980s had been constructed without in-cell sanitation. I have made it very clear to the Irish Prison Service that I must decide whether to embark on a sticking plaster refurbishment of the Mountjoy complex and expend considerable sums to achieve acceptable standards of sanitation, or to demolish and replace the existing buildings. If I come to the view that the buildings must be demolished and replaced, the issue of the prison's location arises as Deputy Cuffe has suggested.
An argument can be made for maintaining a city centre prison, especially one which is close to the Four Courts and can facilitate committals. It is possible following a reallocation of functions within the Prison Service that Arbour Hill Prison would be used for that purpose. The question must be asked if Mountjoy is all that convenient for many visitors. Getting through the city centre is not that easy these days. It might be the case that a location on the M50 or some other place would be more accessible to more people than Mountjoy is at the moment. I will take this issue into account.
I assure Deputy Cuffe that if it were up to me, the resources which are allocated each year would be used almost exclusively to refurbish and upgrade prison accommodation. One of the problems I have faced is that the massive overtime bill in the Prison Service has cannibalised capital which this House has voted for improvements to prisons. The money has been used to pay for an unsustainable staffing level.
