Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I have concerns about the future of the Prison Service. I speak not only as a public representative for a major population centre but as a member of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights. My colleagues on the committee include Deputies Costello and Jim O'Keeffe to whose wisdom I am always happy to listen.

We are all concerned about the antiquated prisons. I recently visited Wheatfield Prison at the invitation of two families. Whatever one might say about the need to deal with criminal justice, people being punished should serve their time in a decent humane environment where it is possible to run proper programmes to cater for their educational, physical and psychological needs. I do not have as much experience of visiting prisons as some of my colleagues but I hope the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights will take the opportunity to visit more prisons. That is important, as we said yesterday.

Wheatfield is an example of facilities as they should be for those who must spend some time in prison. Members have referred to drugs in prison. When I visited Wheatfield and spoke to the two young men with whom I spent some time I was profoundly struck by their wish to be housed in what they regarded as a drug-free landing. There are difficulties in that regard and we need to ensure that those who do not wish to use drugs have an opportunity to stay away from them.

Deputy O'Donovan covered the difficulties that exist for any community in which a prison has been located. I sympathise with the community group making their point about this; that is their democratic right. Mountjoy Prison, however, has outlived its use and must be replaced. We must provide state-of-the art facilities for prisoners to ensure that they serve out their sentences in a humane environment. That includes making provision for them to have visits with their families and so on.

I wish to spend a few moments on the proposals regarding the Central Mental Hospital. I do so as a long-serving member of the former Eastern Health Board and its successor, having first joined in 1994. I had the opportunity of visiting the Central Mental Hospital several times. It is not too dramatic to say that those of us who visited it on those occasions were always greatly shocked by what we saw. If it is true that Mountjoy has outlived its usefulness, there can be no question regarding the Central Mental Hospital.

I hope those proposals are being dealt with and that the proper consultation will take place. The Government, when it decided in principle in December 2004 to locate the new Central Mental Hospital on a site adjacent to the new prison, said it would be subject to further study. I hope the Minister can confirm that the study is under way.

We must remind ourselves that the Central Mental Hospital is a health facility and must be dealt with as such. I am glad the Government made a commitment at the time that it would remain in the ownership and control of the Department of Health and Children and would be managed by the Health Service Executive. It is very important that it be in place so the separation of the two facilities is understood. I do not know whether the Minister is able to provide assurances in that regard today, but we need continual reassurance. I hope that, as the process develops, the Minister will find a regular opportunity to keep the Dáil and its Members fully up to date with developments regarding the prison facility.

It is good that we have had this debate. Other colleagues have referred to television programmes, media coverage and so on. I will not go into that, except to say that ultimately the public will accept that Mountjoy must be replaced and that this proposal is worthy of implementation.

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