Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)
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Question 235: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if progress has been made with regard to the legal position of transferring prisoners from the Central Mental Hospital to courts and certifying such persons as sane only to be recertified when the court appearance is over; the number of prisoners to whom this has applied in the past three years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21417/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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The Deputy will be aware that the Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002 has been passed by the Seanad and is currently awaiting Second Stage in the Dáil. Detailed provisions with regard to changes in the law in the matter of certification and decertification of prisoners as raised by the Deputy were inserted in the Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill following agreement of the Seanad on Report Stage.

The following table shows the number of instances where a person was decertified and transferred from the Central Mental Hospital to prison custody and then subsequently recertified later that day and returned to the Central Mental Hospital.

There are a number of persons who transferred and returned to the Central Mental Hospital on more than one occasion in the same day during the time periods referred to above.