Mr. Noel Waters:

Yes. I am not in any way questioning the validity of the points made by the Comptroller and Auditor General when I say I know from my discussions and my reviews with prison management personnel over recent years that they believe the system of annualised hours has brought about a sea change in how prisons can be managed and has contributed greatly to securing efficiencies against a background of making much-needed reforms in the prison system. A review that is taking place at present is assessing whether further improvements can be made in the system. We can talk about this during the course of the morning.

I accept that the savings involved have not been as great as those which were initially hoped for. This is largely due to a decision by an independent body to provide compensation on a scale greater than that which the Prison Service had argued was warranted for the changes which had been made. By its nature, this was outside the control of the Prison Service. Nonetheless, I think the Comptroller and Auditor General's report recognises that real and significant savings have been achieved. A former Minister of State in the Department said at the time that "despite reservations ... about the deal that emerged [it was] accepted that the overall package represented a workable way forward for the future". It is certainly the view of Prison Service management that this has proven to be the case in the intervening period.

Of course the annualised hours system is not perfect. No system could be perfect in the particular circumstances of closed and open prisons. Twelve years on, if I were faced with a choice between a demonstrably unpredictable and inefficient overtime system and a system of annualised hours that delivers efficiencies, predictability and significant savings, I would recommend to the Minister and the Government that a similar decision to that taken in 2005 be taken again now.

As I have said, Mr. Donnellan will highlight a few of the headline significant changes that have been made in the prison system. In that respect, a crucial change which has occurred over the past decade has been the elimination of unplanned temporary release, or the "revolving door" as it was known. That practice, which was a major feature of the overcrowded system over many years, had an enormously corrosive impact on the entire criminal justice system.

I will conclude by mentioning three items of significant infrastructural development that are in planning. The E block in Portlaoise Prison is in urgent need of replacement due to its dilapidated state. It is expected that construction works on the refurbishment of the two remaining wings in Limerick Prison, along with a stand-alone female facility, will begin towards the end of this year, depending on a tendering competition. Most significantly, a new blueprint for the staged development of the Mountjoy complex, which is designed to extend its viability as a prison complex for decades to come, is in contemplation and, subject to Government approval, is likely be part of a public consultative process later this year. I would like to hand over to Mr. Donnellan now to say a few opening words.