 He chaired an all-party Select Committee into the increase in the state's prison population in 2000 that unanimously recommended the abolition of jail sentences shorter than six months, following the lead of Western Australia, and proposed introducing Canadian house-style prisons for female inmates.The committee also found that up to 75% of female inmates suffered from an episode of mental illness prior to entering the criminal justice system.Ryan also instigated of a Joint Select Committee into the Quality of Building that resulted in a comprehensive rewriting of New South Wales consumer protection laws for the residential home building industry.