Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

I should have stated earlier that if I were to require that it be a function of the inspector to examine individual complaints, he would be inundated with complaints, he would do little more than act as a one-man prison visiting committee and his office would not function. The report required is systemic in nature and the inspector will have the right to examine the conditions of individuals in prisons. However, if prisoners could, as of right, trigger the investigation of each of their complaints, the inspectorate would collapse under the weight of the complaints it would receive.