Mary Henry (Independent)

I have visited prisons on many occasions. I first visited one approximately 20 years ago. One of Nuala Fennell's first visits as Minister of State with responsibility for women's affairs was to the women's prison at Mountjoy Prison. She was shocked by the conditions, especially the lack of medical care. She asked me to visit the prison with her to see what could be done about getting a woman doctor, a general practitioner who lived locally, to attend.

When I visited the prison I had never seen anything like it. It was like something out of a Dickens novel. There was a huge laundry where the girls congregated. The rattling and screaming were appalling. The first thing one notices on visiting the prison today is the lack of screaming. It is extraordinary how an improvement in the condition of inmates, in prison for similar type of crime, encourages them to behave in a different way. That taught me a huge lesson. If people are placed in conditions where they are more likely to be, and feel they are, treated better, their behaviour will greatly improve, both when in prison and, we hope, when they leave.

There is a need to consider the regrettably high rate of recidivism which I am sure the Government wants to reduce. In view of this I regret the amendment. We need to see how we can improve conditions in prisons, which regrettably now hold more than before. Very few members of the public get a chance to enter prisons unless they are visitors or work in them. In view of this we must rely on prison visiting committees to conduct matters on behalf of the public.

I am intrigued by how few politicians have visited prisons. The authorities are not reluctant to accept visitors, on the contrary. They are anxious to show the facilities and explain what is happening. I am also surprised at the small proportion of those in the legal profession, including judges, who have visited prisons. This has improved. I recently attended a lecture in the Law Society and was pleased to discover that it organises tours for students to visit prisons.

Our prisons have improved. While I would not wish to visit the prisons at Wheatfield or Clover Hill for a short holiday, improved facilities allow for a much more productive environment for prisoners and staff. I, therefore, applaud the efforts being made in this regard.