Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputies for the constructive remarks some of them have made. I do not accept that proper time has not been given to considering this matter. Of all the discussions about prison building in the State, this has been the longest running process of consultation. It started in late February, and the resolution has been before the House for over a month. I have spoken on it both in the House and at the Joint Committee for Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights on a number of occasions.

Regarding prison capacity, I accept that Deputies who represent areas near the proposed site are concerned. The reality, however, is there will be some concern no matter where a prison is built. Unfortunately, that is the nature of the world in which we live. However, the Government must provide proper facilities to which people such as Whitaker and Deputy Higgins, when he was on that alleged self-appointed committee, aspire. Since 1997, when the Government came into office, some 1,300 extra prison places have been provided. We must be given some credit for the fact that when we came to office there were 2,316 prison places and today there are just under 3,600. As we speak, work is at an extremely advanced stage on refurbishing or replacing existing cells in Portlaoise, Castlerea, Loughan House and Shelton Abbey. Work will soon start on a new block in Wheatfield to provide 144 extra places and an invitation to tender will have issued as regards the complex at Thornton Hall.

Deputy O'Rourke raised the issue of the community service scheme run by the probation and welfare service which is under review. A final draft of the report on the review will be available by the end of July which I will make available to the House.

Several Deputies, particularly Deputy Naughten, raised the issue of asylum seekers and deportees being kept at the proposed site. As I said at the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights, there will be capacity to allow for the detention of deportees in this facility. However, it will be segregated detention and will facilitate their deportation. Currently, deportees are held at prisons such as Cloverhill where they are not segregated from the prison population. Strict time limits are in place as to how long a deportee can be held. Provision will not be made in the prison for asylum seekers per se. However, I cannot say some asylum seekers may not be imprisoned there for other offences, as they are obliged to comply with the State's criminal law.

The issue of public private partnerships was raised by several Deputies. As I said at the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights, it has never been my modus operandi in any ministry I have held to participate or involve myself in contracting and I do not intend to change it in this ministry. However, I wish the public private partnership issue to be dealt with as expeditiously as possible to ensure the taxpayer gets a proper return with no overspend. The Opposition would be the first to object if there was an overspend on this project.

The invitation to tender specified that it was to be a design-build-maintain project. Any Member who suggests this is a move to privatise the running of the prison is living in cloud-cuckoo-land. I agree with Deputy Higgins who went into some detail on the American prison system. I would never envisage that happening in Ireland. The Irish Prison Service is excellent and I see no change in its position.

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