Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Fianna Fáil supports plans to build a new prison in Cork in order to address the current poor quality conditions there. It is vital that the State has the capacity to adequately rehabilitate prisoners in a safe environment and cater for the prison population. The current practice of slopping out, as well as the conditions of overcrowding and insufficient visitor access, are incompatible with that goal. The new prison is a step towards addressing these long-standing problems.

The Irish Penal Reform Trust has consistently identified chronic overcrowding and inhumane conditions in Cork Prison as among the most critical in the Irish prison system, with multiple occupancy of cells, in-cell sanitation available in only eight of its 144 cells and inadequate medical and visiting facilities. There were 217 prisoners in Cork Prison on 13 June 2013, with an operational bed capacity of 210. The Inspector of Prisons has previously stated that the current Cork Prison should accommodate no more than 146 prisoners. In recent years the prison has regularly held around 300 prisoners, underlining its completely inadequate capacity and gross overcrowding.

The Cork Prison visiting committee recently expressed concern in its annual report for 2012 about the completely outdated and poor conditions in some parts of Cork Prison and has welcomed the Government's commitment to a new prison in Cork. In its publication in February 2012 the Irish Penal Reform Trust welcomed the Irish Prison Service strategy document entitled Unlocking Community Alternatives - A Cork Approach, which was published on 29 February 2012, as a practical response to the long-standing issues of intolerable conditions and chronic overcrowding in Cork Prison. The strategy document proposed the building of a new 150-cell prison with full in-cell sanitation on the site adjacent to Cork Prison. That vision forms the basis of the Bill to provide for the building of this prison; in effect, it will provide planning permission for the new prison. The new prison must have adequate space to accommodate prison population demands both currently and in the future, based on anticipated trends.

The construction of the new prison is obviously an issue of particular concern to local residents, whose needs must be of paramount importance in the development of the prison. The unique planning permission mechanism used to construct prisons makes this even more important. It is vital that sufficient measures are put in place to ensure that the concerns of residents are fully addressed. Fianna Fáil welcomes the measures announced recently, namely, the commitment by the Irish Prison Service to drawing up a good neighbourhood policy, which will provide a framework under which the concerns of local residents during the construction phase can be fully dealt with.

The Irish Prison Service project manager will act as a liaison officer and will set up a local consultation group to address any issues that arise during the construction period. A construction environmental management plan will be drawn up by the principal contractor and approved by the Irish Prison Service and it will be implemented in keeping with best practice. The implementation of a traffic management plan will form a key part of the construction environmental management plan. The contractor and the Irish Prison Service will liaise closely with An Garda Síochána, Cork City Council and other interested parties in preparing a traffic management plan that will minimise the impact of construction traffic on local residents and businesses. It is of paramount importance that all of these issues be managed in a professional and coherent manner in order to address the concerns of the residents who live adjacent to the prison or in the vicinity of it.

I reiterate that we support the Bill. It began its journey by way of a motion referred to a committee and it was debated at the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality. We also had a session during which we debated a resolution, which was adopted by Dáil Éireann. We are happy to support the Bill today.

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