Mr. Conal McFeely:

Reference was made to strip-searching and various technologies. During the course of our research over the past five or six years, we have looked at prison technology throughout the world. We believe the appropriate technology exists. We are told there is a cost factor with this technology. Within this island, the technology to deal with full body searching exists. It is currently in Portlaoise Prison. During the process of negotiating this agreement, Mr. Bunting and I visited Portlaoise Prison. We talked to the head of the Prison Service about technology, especially technology to deal with political or paramilitary prisoners. The technology referred to in our report is currently available in Portlaoise Prison. It detects explosives, drugs and all sorts of things. We also convinced the Prison Service in the North to bring in what is known as the body orifice security scanner, BOSS, chair. Initially, those responsible did not want to bring it in. Then Mr. Bunting, through his trade union connections with the Irish Prison Service, informed the head of the Northern Ireland Prison Service during the negotiations that there was a spare BOSS chair not being used in Portlaoise Prison. It was available to be brought to Maghaberry to resolve the difficulty. Overnight, they accepted the offer to bring in the BOSS chair. There is also another detector in Portlaoise Prison. In our view these measures would remove the need for routine strip-searching.

The technology already exists. We are told that the reason it is not being used in the North is because it does not give them a 100% guarantee that a person does not have something hidden inside his body.

This is part of the problem in dealing with the issue at Maghaberry. To all intents and purposes what we have is a security mindset, and it continues to this day. It is stifling any opportunity to move towards a more humane prison system not only for prisoners but for prison staff as well.