Roadtown, Tortola - The National Security Council (NSC) has approved recommendations of the Prison Review Committee, appointed earlier this year to undertake its review of the state of affairs at Her Majesty’s Prison.
 
One of the primary recommendations outlined in the report submitted by the Prison Review Committee is the introduction of rehabilitation programmes for inmates. According to the report “programmes for rehabilitation for inmates should be introduced without delay to re-integrate them into society and to help them become productive persons on their release.”

It is also expected that sentence planning would recommence as part of the rehabilitation effort. This would include identifying skills that inmates possess and incorporating these into the rehabilitation programmes.

Another recommendation outlined by the Prison Review Committee is the need to improve security at the prison through measures such as reinforcement of the perimeter fence and ensuring the facility is properly illuminated.

The report also addresses human resource issues at the prison, specifically that of proper training for recruits, ensuring that officers have a clear understanding of their job description and the removal of staff who compromise the security of the prison.

It has also been recommended that additional staff be employed and that prison officers be afforded improved benefits. In the light of their decision on the recommendations of the Prison Review Committee, the NSC has mandated the Ministry of Education and Culture, which has responsibility for prisons, to formulate urgently a plan of action detailing the corrective measures to be taken and the time frame within which to do so.

The Prisons Review Committee was appointed in April this year in response to the NSC’s concerns about conditions at the prison and the possible threat to national security.  The committee comprised Mr. Lewis Hunte, QC as chairman, Dr. Sylvia Simmons and Mrs. Heather Cuff. The NSC has expressed satisfaction with the committee’s fulfilment of its mandate which included the compilation of a report that addresses the general conditions in the prison and highlights the overarching problems that have contributed to the current state of affairs and that call for correction.