Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 440: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the progress made on making prisons drug free. [15503/09]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Irish Prison Service Drugs Policy & Strategy, entitled Keeping Drugs Out of Prison, which was launched in May 2006, continues to be implemented. The aim of the Strategy is to reduce the demand for drugs within the prison system through education, treatment and rehabilitation services for drug addicted prisoners. Particular initiatives include, inter alia, the provision of detoxification, methadone maintenance, education programmes, addiction counselling and drug therapy programmes.

I am glad to tell the Deputy that the Government has provided significant resources to the IPS in recent years to enable it to tackle a range of addiction issues in the prison system. One example has been the awarding of a contract for the provision of addiction counselling services to Merchants Quay Ireland. This contract has been rolled out, and addiction counselling services are now available in prisons and places of detention where prisoners require such a service. The addiction counselling service delivers approximately 1000 hours per week of prisoner access to addiction counselling.

Furthermore, the implementation of the Policy and Strategy has also seen an intensification of efforts to eliminate the availability of illicit drugs within prisons including:

• Tighter control and monitoring of prisoner visits in all closed prisons.

• New visiting arrangements in most closed prisons, with visitors required to be pre-approved by the Governor and required to provide identification on each visit.

• Greater use of screened visits.

• Greater vigilance in examining mail by prison censors and searching of other items entering the prison.

• Increased random searching of cells and their occupants.

• Stricter searching of all persons committed to custody and prisoners returning from court, temporary release, after visits or on receipt of intelligence.

• Use of modern cameras and probe systems which assist in searching previously difficult areas such as hollow chair or bed legs, under floor boards and other cavities.

• A number of BOSS chairs are in use which are used to scan all prisoners for contraband secreted in their body cavities.

• Installation of nets over exercise yards to prevent access to contraband items, including mobile phones and drugs.

• Use of phone detectors and phased installation of telephone blocking technology.

In addition, a number of new additional security initiatives have been introduced in all closed prisons. These include:

• The introduction of enhanced security screening for all persons (visitors and staff) entering our prisons.

• The establishment of a drug detection dog service within the Irish Prison Service involving approximately 30 handling teams.

• The establishment of Operational Support Units dedicated to and developing expertise in searching and gathering intelligence on illicit material being hidden inside our prisons; they will be available in addition to the normal prison staff and can target specific security problem areas.