The separation of prisoners has been criticised

A decision to separate paramilitary prisoners at a County Antrim jail is dangerous for staff implementing it, a former Northern Ireland minister has said.

Michael Mates, the chairman of the parliamentary Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, has criticised the separation of loyalist and republican prisoners at Maghaberry jail near Lisburn.

Mr Mates was speaking on Wednesday following the publication of a report which looked at the situation in the high-security jail.

The Conservative MP also called on the government to study the prison estate to see if a third adult prison could be created.

A review of safety at the jail last September recommended separation following violent clashes between rival groups in the jail and a "dirty protest" by dissident republicans.

Mr Mates said: "In our view the decision was not made simply on grounds of safety, as was suggested at the time, but in order to avoid further damage to community relations at a particularly fragile point in the peace process.

A prison office was burned out during recent trouble

"The reasons why this happened are entirely understandable, but the decision was nonetheless a dangerous one for those who have to implement it."

He said the government must accept full responsibility for the implementation of separation and the additional demands it would place on Prison Service resources.

Mr Mates said the prison management needed urgent support with staffing, as well as updating security systems and accommodation which was "officially recognised to be unsafe".

As well as paramilitary prisoners, Maghaberry houses male and female prisoners, whether they are convicted or on remand, and a number of asylum seekers.

We are determined prison staff will remain in control Jane Kennedy Security minister

Mr Mates said the prison was an "extremely complicated institution".

"With the additional complications of separation, Maghaberry simply has too large and complex a burden to bear," he said.

"We are therefore asking the government to take a fresh look at the prison estate to see if it is now time to create a third adult prison in Northern Ireland."

Security Minister Jane Kennedy said there would be no return to "Maze-style conditions".

Ms Kennedy was replying to questions from MPs following criticism of the decision by a parliamentary committee.

She told the Commons on Wednesday: "We are determined prison staff will remain in control."

We have always been of the view that we should not have gone down the road of the Maze Finlay Spratt Prison Officers' Association

Finlay Spratt of the Prison Officers' Association welcomed the report's findings.

He said they had opposed the decision to separate paramilitary prisoners, which he called "appeasement".

"We have always been of the view that we should not have gone down the road of the Maze," he said.

A recent wave of security alerts in parts of Belfast, which police blamed on the Ulster Defence Association, was linked to trouble by loyalist inmates at the jail.

Last month, 35 loyalist prisoners barricaded themselves inside a wing of the prison, where loyalist and republican inmates had been separated on a temporary basis.

Meanwhile, a UK-wide strike by prison officers was averted last month.

The strike threat was over the level of security measures being provided at prison officers' homes in Northern Ireland.

It followed attacks on a number of homes of serving and former prison officers, linked to the prisoners' dispute.