The Blantyre House Prison Affair: Lessons from a Modern-Day Witch Hunt - Brossura

Murtagh, Tom

Brossura

ISBN 10: 190438031X ISBN 13: 9781904380313

Casa editrice: Waterside Pr, 2007

Riassunto

In this autobiographical account of his life as a prison governor and administrator, Tom Murtagh deals with life in charge of The Maze Prison, Northern Ireland - when he narrowly avoided being killed by a terrorist bomb - and his move to England. This is when he was faced with a remarkable series of events at Blantyre House where a modern, liberal, ground-breaking, and in many respects, successful regime was beginning to attract the attention of reformers, academics, and others. But that regime also masked more sinister developments - events that should ultimately have received serious attention from a House of Commons Select Committee set up to look into 'The Blantyre House Affair.' Only now - and after much reflection - does Tom Murtagh feel able to tell publicly his side of the affair of how the committee chose to concentrate on selective and misleading information. Despite all the accolades for Blantyre House, behind the scenes and in reality, the regime was being taken advantage of by a number of very serious offenders who had managed to get themselves transferred there so that the establishment was at risk of being overtaken by organized crime and corruption, leading to covert police and other criminal investigations. The book tells how the author acted to preempt this, only to be vilified by HM Inspectorate of Prisons, some penal reform groups, and ultimately the committee. The Blantyre House Affair is a telling example of how people can sometimes be swept along by events that may cause them to ignore those things that are counter or inconvenient to their own aims or interpretation.

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Recensione:

'I was emotionally gripped by this book as soon as I began reading the foreword by former Director General of the Prison Service, Martin Narey. His courageous introductory piece sets the scene for what follows - an absorbing and most disturbing account of events and controversy that began at one of the UK's less well-known (and happily less notorious) prison establishments in 2003, and then developed to engulf the author - Tom Murtagh - then area manager for the Prison Service in Kent, Surrey and Sussex... it reminds us of fragility of trust on which public service too often depends. Although Blantyre House is a relatively small story in the wider context of malversation in public life, it is one that deserves awareness by a wide readership - it is enlightening material for every student of public administration and should invite careful reflection by every committed practitioner in the public services (not just those in criminal justice)' --John Raine, University of Birmingham, Vista

'A strikingly interesting and well written book' --Justice of the Peace

Tom Murtagh's actions in managing Blantyre House 'not only preserved all that was good about the Blantyre regime . . . but may have saved my job and perhaps that of the Home Secretary.' --Martin Narey, Director of Barnardo's and former Director-General of HM Prison Service

Product Description:

Unusual book

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Waterside Pr
• Data di pubblicazione: 2007
• ISBN 10: 190438031X
• ISBN 13: 9781904380313
• Rilegatura: Copertina flessibile
• Numero di pagine: 216