Denis Landy (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have two very brief questions. I thank the Chairman for allowing me to contribute and I thank the witnesses for the information they provided. I am probably one of the few people in the room who have never been in Maghaberry. I am from Tipperary. I am not exposed to and have no experience of Maghaberry other than what I read in the media and what I have read in history, etc., and I am quite shocked by what I have heard today.

Mr. Finucane raised the issues of deprivation and educational facilities. I spent a large part of my life working with deprived people and I have always believed and told every one of them that the only way out of deprivation is education. Regarding the issue of correspondence courses not being allowed to be transacted - I might be speaking naively but I will ask the question - is there any possibility that they might be allowed to be done through a hard copy of correspondence? To deprive somebody who wants to enable himself through education - to use one of the witnesses' phrase - to leave the prison a better person than when he entered is unacceptable.

The other question concerns the human rights issue. Has the independent assessment team taken a case or cases to the European Court of Human Rights vis-à-visMaghaberry? I apologise but I must leave. I was supposed to leave at 3.45 p.m. I will read the witnesses' answers on the record and I hope to get an opportunity to visit Maghaberry. I think somebody has already suggested a visit. It would be very important for me to see it on the ground.