11th November 2003

PRESS RELEASE

GREEN PARTY ACCUSES MCDOWELL OF IDEALOGICAL POSTURING

The Green Party has accused the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform Michael McDowell TD of ideological posturing in his announcement yesterday that he intends to close two open prisons, move the management for two more ‘outside the Prison Service' and privatise the prison escort service.

"The Minister appears not to have given serious consideration to the alternative proposals put forward by the Prison Officers' Association," explained Ciarán Cuffe TD, today, the Green Party's Justice Spokesperson.  "I want him to explain why he intends to close the prisons with the lowest operating costs and move prisoners to prisons with higher operating costs."

"Of course we want to see changes in the unacceptably high levels of overtime in the Irish Prison Service, but the Green Party believes that this should not be done at the expense of prison closures."

The Green Party intends raising the matter in Dáil Éireann this afternoon.