Prison acts over mass sick leave

The Prison Service in the North was today preparing to put into action contingency plans after it received rumours that a large number of prison officers would this morning call in sick as part of a long-running dispute with the government.

What form the contingency plans would take have not been revealed, but they are thought to involve sending police officers into the top security Maghaberry jail in Antrim, Magilligan prison in Derry and a young offenders’ centre.