Ombudsman quits over role's power

Brian Coulter said he resigned over the principle of independence

The head of a prisons scrutiny body has said he resigned earlier this year because of "irreconcilable differences" with the Northern Ireland Office (NIO).

Prisoner Ombudsman Brian Coulter's final annual report said his decision related to "the key principle of independence".

He adds it was wrongly reported he resigned due to a row with the NIO.

But he has said it was true he became disenchanted at the failure to secure appropriate powers for his office.

Robust

In the report, Mr Coulter said: "In particular, my views on the lines of accountability and independence for the prisoner ombudsman were largely disregarded in the draft legislation to be incorporated in the Ministry of Justice-sponsored Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill.

"My exchanges on these issues with the Northern Ireland Office, and especially with the Prison Service, though robust, were professional and polite and no row ever took place."

He said the office of prisoner ombudsman "should be empowered in the same way as for other statutory ombudsmen".

"This is the only way of avoiding duplication of effort arising from the involvement of several ombudsmen."

Mr Coulter also said lessons should be learned from his office's investigations into deaths in custody and the associated concern about the impact of drugs abuse in prisons.

He was appointed as the first prisoner ombudsman for Northern Ireland in May 2005 and will leave office at the end of August.

A successor to Mr Coulter, who announced his resignation in January, is expected to be announced shortly.