Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 12:

In page 9, subsection (1), line 21, after "person" to insert "without delay".

This is a technical amendment to make it clear that the Minister should not delay in revoking a certificate, which should be done as speedily as possible.

On amendment No. 14, there is no indication in the Bill as drafted of the timeframe in which the Minister must deal with a complaint under section 9(9). A complaint of this nature should be considered as a serious issue and be dealt with as a matter of priority. These inserted subsections would ensure that the Minister deals with the matter promptly, but they would also ensure that the person complained about would not be permitted to work until such time as the matter is resolved.

The suspension of a prisoner custody officer would be in keeping with other provisions of the Bill whereby pending the decision of the Minister to renew a certificate, a prisoner custody officer may not continue to work. In effect, a similar situation exists in this instance. Pending the decision of the Minister, a prisoner custody officer should not be allowed to work. In the event that the accusation is correct or well founded, the amendment would ensure that there would be no opportunity for the prisoner custody officer to deal out punishment or retribution on the complainant.

On amendment No. 17, searches of a person involve the violation of important rights. I recognise that searches are sometimes required for the safety of prisoners and that prisoners submit themselves necessarily to a regime that involves violations of privacy at many different levels, but the Bill falls short in terms of its safeguards to protect all prisoners from unwarranted intrusions in their rights.

The amendment represents a simple reporting structure whereby there would be a record of every search and an explanation of same. The amendment's effect would be to protect the prisoner's rights and to shield the prisoner custody officer from any unjustified accusations or unfounded complaints.

Amendment No. 18 is a technical amendment that is dependent on the acceptance of amendment No. 17.