Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to comment briefly on the inspector's report and the many reports of his predecessors which have provided much food for thought and debate in this and the Lower House. It must be acknowledged that every society has prisons and prisoners. Prison is an emotive word. Sadly, it remains a necessary part of the maintenance of social order in this country and in other societies.

It is disappointing to see reports repeatedly highlighting overcrowding, re-offending and the same people being in prison on a revolving door-type basis. There are major issues which must be addressed by society and by us from a legislative perspective, including prison sentencing, prison accommodation, training, education and so on. It appears that we have not made much progress in this regard during the past 15 to 20 years, in particular in regard to re-offending.

It is traditional in this country that the majority of prisoners come from a particular socioeconomic background, which is regrettable. This illustrates the need for progress in society from an educational perspective. We must try to ensure children remain in school and to enhance and increase opportunities for those people for whom a life of crime becomes the natural outlet.

The merits and demerits of the Celtic tiger are continually mentioned in this House. It must be acknowledged that during the Celtic tiger era respect and manners went out the door. Bad manners and a lack of respect became the norm as a result of the Celtic tiger. Such lack of respect not alone for authority but for neighbours, parents and the elderly leads, in many cases, first to minor crime and then to more serious crime. We must address this issue at school level. We must from the earliest possible age try to instil in children the need for respect for their peers and colleagues. A regeneration of respect among young people would help in stemming the tide of low and high level crime and vandalism.

The report before us deals with the prison system. We must all acknowledge the need for progress in regard to the provision of additional prison spaces, the construction of Thornton Hall and the construction of the new prison in Cork. Senator Buttimer in his contribution asked the Minister of State for an update in regard to the proposed prison at Kilworth. I, too, am interested in hearing the Minister of State's response in that regard. Progress must also be made on community service as an alternative to prison. Much work needs to be done. We have had many reports on prisons from prison visiting committees and so on, all of which indicates that the current system is not working as well as it should.

I doubt I have added anything of significance to this debate. I want to acknowledge the work done by the inspector and his predecessors, whom I believe are challenging us to provide not alone new accommodation for prisoners but new interventions and approaches to ensure fewer people are in prison and, more important, a reduction in the rate of crime in this country.