The Directorate-General for Reintegration and Prison Services (DGRSP) has warned that a €27-million deficit in its budget this year is leading to a chronic lack of funds and staff shortages.
The DGRSP voiced its concern in the wake of a report published by the General Inspectorate of Justice Services (IGSI) that reveals widespread shortfalls in the day-to-day functioning of Portugal’s prison service and the risk of disruption in essential areas like catering and health assistance.
The DGRSP is responsible for the running of Portugal’s 49 prisons and eight educational centres, which house young offenders.
The 177-page report revealed instances where outside contractors responsible for providing ancillary services had suspended their operations due to late payment.
“The pressure from suppliers is immense,” reads the report. In some cases “payment of debt carried over from 2012 was only authorised in October 2013, almost a year of delays, with severe constraints from suppliers.”
The report notes that repeated budget shortfalls has meant that by the end of 2012 around €2.2 million of expenditure was incurred by the prison services without budget provision – an accumulation of 1,100 invoices dating back to 2006. It also highlights the lack of reliable data. “The real value of the debt is not known,” it says.
According to the report’s authors, the DGRSP’s financial needs for 2014 is estimated at €257 million. Its budget however has been set at €230 million, a shortfall of €27 million.
In compiling its report, the IGSI scrutinised six cases of acquisition of services such as prepared meals, health or electronic surveillance – amenities that in some cases took up to 34 months to obtain.
The length of time required to procure these services forced the DGRPS to intervene directly so that essential services (in this case health) would not be interrupted.
The report noted that while intervention like this is partly the responsibility of the DGRPS anyway, it takes too long for other governmental departments such as the office of the Secretary of State for Public Affairs or services of the Ministry of Justice to approve the strengthening of funds or expenses, or launch public tenders for outside contractors, which can take almost three years to achieve.
Expanding its theme, the IGSI emphasised that the delay in awarding tenders was also costing the government dearly.
It highlighted a case where a security company that controls the supervision of electronic surveillance bracelets was operating under 18 months of direct negotiations due to a delay in the completion of a new tender because of lack of funds.
“If the new tender had been completed in time to succeed the previous contract, the savings would have been significant, at around €1 million.”
Despite criticising the violation of procurement rules, the audit conceded that essential services such as catering, health care and security should never be disrupted. To do so would generate instability and disorder within the prison system.
Exacerbating the financial dilemma faced by the DGRSP is the fact that most of the grocery stores and refreshment outlets operating within jails are not subject to VAT, nor do they deliver invoices on goods sold to inmates. Moreover, grocery stores – designated as prison canteens – don’t operate an accounting system. It’s a situation described by the auditors as “organisational chaos that creates a series of tax illegalities”.
According to the report, prison canteens profit to the tune of an average €680,000 per year, but only deliver €600,000 to the DGRSP. Furthermore, goods are being marked up to 12% above the wholesale price by canteens in order to meet operating costs, a hike that has prompted complaints from inmates and a reminder from the IGSI that retailers operating within prison walls are not supposed to profit from their activities.
