Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

I will try to be equally brief. The Provisional IRA prisoners have been detained in the Grove area in Castlerea since 1999, which is an open prison. I understand from everyone involved that it cannot be described as living in luxury. The McCabe killers, together with the other prisoners in Castlerea, are under no illusions that they are in prison. The governor is totally in charge in all prisons, including Castlerea. It is a matter for the governor to determine the duties of prisoners. It is entirely inaccurate to say that these prisoners are in control of the prison. The fact is that the murderers of Detective Garda Jerry McCabe are in prison. They will remain there for the duration of their sentence and, to the best of my knowledge, there are no proposals to change this.

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