Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Question 11: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the changes he proposes to make to arrangements in respect of prison visiting committees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40271/08]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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A Visiting Committee is appointed to each prison under the Prisons (Visiting Committees) Act, 1925 and Prisons (Visiting Committees) Order, 1925. Members of Committees are appointed by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform for a term not exceeding three years. A Committee should have a minimum of 6 members and a maximum of 12 members. The function of Visiting Committees is to visit at frequent intervals the prison to which they are appointed and hear any complaints which may be made to them by any prisoner. The Visiting Committee have free access either collectively or individually to every part of their prison. They report to me any abuses observed or found by them in the prison and any repairs which they think may be urgently needed. It is the normal practice for each Visiting Committee to submit an annual report which is published on the Department's website.

Questions have occasionally been raised as to whether there is duplication between the role of the Inspector of Prisons and that of the Visiting Committees and whether the structure of Visiting Committees is the most cost effective model.

Having considered the matter I am satisfied that there is no duplication of roles. The Inspector of Prisons is a professional full time office dedicated to carrying out regular inspection of prisons and reporting to me on their management and operation. It is not the function of the Inspector to hear complaints from individual prisoners. In contrast Visiting Committees involve a number of lay people, who are dedicated to one institution and who do have a function to listen to complaints by individual prisoners. The Visiting Committees and the Inspector of Prisons perform separate but complimentary roles in ensuring independent oversight of our prison institutions. As to cost effectiveness, I note that the cost of Visiting Committees has in fact been reduced in recent years.

Acknowledging the important role which the Visiting Committees play in each of our prisons I have recently reviewed the level of membership across all the Committees. I have come to the view that whilst we need to have a mix and range of skills on the Committees there is no reason why a committee of nine members could not perform the important functions assigned to it. I have therefore decided that for the future, unless cogent reasons otherwise require it, the aim should be to have nine rather than twelve members on each Committee. I believe that a more streamlined committee can, in fact, be more focused in its approach thus ensuring that prisoners have access to this layer of independent oversight which compliments the work of the Inspector of Prisons and other international oversight bodies, such as the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.