Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

I am concerned about the source that was quoted from within the Second Report of the Inspector of Prisons and Places of Detention, namely the Serco Institute. The institute has been discredited as an independent source of advice on the issue of privatisation of prisons.

I appreciate the Minister's concerns about overtime and agree that it is a problem that must be addressed. However, it should not be addressed in a face-off situation with prison officers. The Minister must undertake a process of sweeping and radical reform of the prison service to remove the mantra of secrecy that was raised by the inspector in his report.

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