Government is working on eliminating a backlog in the parole system, Attorney General Larry Mussenden assured the Senate on Wednesday.

Sen. Mussenden accepted that a number of prison inmates were overdue for parole, but said that prisoners also had to complete certain programmes before they could be paroled.

He said rehabilitative programmes were of ?utmost importance? to prison inmates and that Government had? committed enormous resources to the entire parole programme?.

The issue was raised by Opposition Senator who noted that the prison did not have a psychologist to assess prisoners suitability for parole and that some prisoners who were eligible for parole were ?in limbo? and becoming frustrated and he added that the Parole Board was not meeting on a regular basis.

He told later that the legislature should repeal laws requiring the inmates to complete certain programmes before parole if the system was not working.

Later acting prisons Commissioner Clarence Davis said that the prison was short one psychologist because of a resignation and that efforts were underway to find a replacement.

But he said that was not a major reason for any backlog. He said a number of prisoners come up quickly for parole by the time they are sentenced because time already spent in custody is taken into account.

But such people still have to complete certain programmes before being released.

He would not say how long the prison has been short a psychologist or how soon another one will be hired.?All I am stating is that we had a psychologist who resigned and we need to fill the post and we are in the process of trying to fill the post,? Mr. Davis said.

He sad efforts were also underway to ?streamline? the system.