Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein)
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I thank the witnesses for their presentations. I want to point out at the start because it is important to put it on the record, given some of the previous contributions, that it is not as if there has not been any political engagement or engagement from political parties with this issue in the North. I note Mr. Peter Bunting's comments in regard to our party chairperson but it goes back further than that. Raymond McCartney, Jennifer McCann, Pat Sheehan, Carál Ní Chuilín are all ex-prisoners and they have all engaged with the various groupings in Roe House and beyond on these matters going back a long number of years. At times there have been particular individuals and organisations in there who have not wanted to engage with Sinn Féin on the issues. That has hindered us in our ability to bring a positive resolution, focused frame of mind or approach to the issue.

The witnesses have painted a very depressing picture in their contributions. I refer to hearing words like "regression" in regard to what is happening in the prison, the prevalence of a security culture and focus. As people who over a long period of years have visited friends or relatives in prison, we know how petty and nuanced that kind of approach can get when it comes to the prisoners or their families who are visiting. All the evidence the witnesses have presented points to that culture prevailing. Within the broader context of prison reform and how we deal with the issues that manifest themselves in Roe House, is there an indication of progress or change of culture on foot of any number of reviews and reports that have examined the problems? If there was, where should that focus be initially? Should it be at managerial or staffing level? If one happens, can it impact on the other? Does it need to a Patten mark two?

My final question relates to the proposed visit by Senator Feighan and others. The difficulty for us is that we want to see this happen and our remit is around the implementation of the Agreement and this is a core component to it. Do the witnesses, in terms of their proposals, recommendations, suggestions and findings, believe the Fresh Start agreement offers us a pathway to resolving these issues? What do they think the focus of this committee should be when approaching the issues specific to Roe House and the broader issues of prison reform?