Page 4468 - Week 15 - Thursday, 22 November 1990
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Also, a survey of ACT prisoners in New South Wales gaols is nearing completion. This Government will be reviewing the 1971 agreement governing the placement of our prisoners in New South Wales. As well as that, Mr Berry, security is being improved at Quamby. Additional money is being provided in this budget to augment existing programs. The community service order and attendance centre programs will be expanded to reflect increasing demand from the courts for these services.
Mr Berry: But what about dodgy performance indicators?
MR STEFANIAK: What dodgy performances? Funds will be made available for the greater use of drug testing procedures at the Belconnen Remand Centre. There is a large number of initiatives, Mr Berry. It is hardly as if this Government is doing nothing in this area.
MR CONNOLLY (11.31): Mr Speaker, the trouble with the Alliance Government's policy on corrections is that one never quite knows what it is from day to day. The Minister may say one thing, but the Executive Deputy with the responsibility keeps bobbing up with other comments. In the last few months we have had endorsement for the 10 o'clock curfew for persons under 16 years of age; we have had plaintive cries that people are being granted bail and that young repeat offenders should be denied access to bail. On the one hand, we have Mr Collaery's statements along policy lines, which we generally support, about looking more at alternatives to imprisonment, more enlightened methods of correction. On the other hand, we have a regular cacophony of press releases from Mr Stefaniak who is rapidly earning a reputation around the town as "Lock 'em up Bill".
It is a rather schizophrenic government policy with, on the one hand, statements from Mr Collaery along the lines of an enlightened corrections policy that the Opposition can but support - the action to follow through when we have problems with Mr Yabsley perhaps is not there as we would like it, but we support the broad thrust of that policy - and, on the other hand, the Executive Deputy, who we can but presume speaks with some authority for the Government on these matters within his portfolio responsibility, continually pushing the line of the Michael Yabsley, redneck, "Lock 'em up and hang 'em high" approach. Mr Speaker, the quandary for the Opposition is: what is the Government's policy and who speaks for the Government on this issue?
MR HUMPHRIES (Minister for Health, Education and the Arts) (11.33): Mr Speaker, I was not going to take part in this debate, but some of the statements made by Mr Connolly, in particular, are so outrageous that one has to respond to them.
Mr Kaine: He has to get hot under the collar because the Leader of the Opposition is not here, as usual, to make any contribution to this debate.
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