Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
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Question 36: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the progress made over recent months, if any, on the Thornton Hall project; if consideration has been given to rethinking this project in favour of a more feasible smaller institution; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5602/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, the Government re-affirmed its commitment to developing a new prison campus at Thornton Hall, Kilsallaghan, County Dublin and also approved the launch of a new tendering process for the construction of a more affordable and better value prison campus at Thornton. The aim is to provide good quality, regime focussed prison accommodation with appropriate support and rehabilitative facilities for prisoners to prepare them for re-integration back into society.

The development is now proceeding on a phased basis with phase one comprising essential enabling works including the construction of the dedicated access road, perimeter wall and off-site services. Tenders for the construction of the access road are planned to issue in March/April of this year. A tender competition for the construction of the perimeter wall of the prison is planned to issue during the Summer of this year.

An EU wide tender competition for the appointment of technical advisors to the Irish Prison Service is already in progress. The Irish Prison Service is being assisted in this process by the National Development Finance Agency. In addition the National Development Finance Agency, on behalf of the Irish Prison Service, commenced a tender competition for legal advisers for the project on 19 January 2010.

It is intended to invite tenders for the construction of the main prison development later this year. All options have to be considered in the context of the detailed capital appraisal of the project. The idea of a multiplicity of smaller institutions on different sites around the Dublin area is simply far less practical than the proposals for a campus arrangement at Thornton.