John Whelan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I have every confidence in the Minister and I trust her bona fides and perspective in the matter. I urge her to hold a direct meeting with the POA at the earliest opportunity. I accept that I used strong language but I do not do so lightly. It is informed by ongoing representations I am receiving from prison officers in Portlaoise and across the country. I do not want to be inflammatory but in some cases they are fearing for their lives, such is the attritional, dangerous and violent character of the prison regime as it has now become. A reduction in prisoner numbers is not, in itself, the issue.

I am heartened to hear that the Minister is committed to ongoing consultation and change by negotiation because the POA does not get that sense from elements within the Irish Prison Service at this juncture. Trust has broken down and it needs to be restored.