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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 9 Hansard (4 September) . . Page.. 2907 ..

MR HIRD (continuing):

Sending prisoners out of the Territory also creates enormous problems for the families of prisoners, as Mr Osborne pointed out. Maintaining family relationships is an important element in the rehabilitation of people who become involved in crime activities. Not all of our prisoners are sent to Goulburn, which, it will be said, is only half an hour away. The fact is that it would be much easier for ACT families to maintain contact if prisoners were retained in the Territory.

Members of the standing committee spent a lot of time on fact-finding tours of modern correctional facilities in Queensland and New South Wales. Each has its own special style of operation, but of those we inspected we were most impressed - I certainly was - with the facilities in Junee in southern New South Wales and Lotus Glen near Cairns in Queensland. Lotus Glen is operated by Queensland Correctional Services, so it is a State-run institution, whereas the Junee facility is privately owned. That, of course, poses the question of whether an ACT prison ought to be built by the Territory and administered by the Government or whether the entire project should be handed over to private enterprise. The final decision, however, should take into account the needs of the region, not just the ACT.

The question of a site also arises. While there may not be many appropriate sites available in the Territory, considering public perception, I would urge all members of this parliament to take it on themselves to have a look at the old Honeysuckle Creek space tracking station south of Canberra. I believe this would make an ideal site, big enough for the establishment of an all security classifications facility, including - which is important - a prison farm. The need for a suitable correctional facility in the ACT is something this parliament will have to consider sooner rather than later. I commend the statement presented by Mr Osborne.

Mr Osborne referred to an article published in the Canberra Times this week under the by-line of Graham Cooke, the newspaper's city roundsman, following an interview I gave to Mr Cooke some time ago. In response to Mr Osborne's allegations, I draw the parliament's attention to the front page of the Chronicle - a newspaper from the Canberra Times stable - in the issue of Tuesday, 19 August this year, two weeks before the Canberra Times article quoting my views. That article, headlined "Prison Push: Jail inevitable and desirable, say politicians", quotes Mr Osborne and Mr Wood - both members of the Standing Committee on Legal Affairs and both subject to the same standing orders as I am. Mr Osborne is reported as saying that a prison in the ACT was inevitable because ACT taxpayers "give NSW far too much money already". I do not disagree with that. Mr Osborne goes on to say:

The ACT will probably need a prison with a potential capacity to hold 200 to 300 detainees, which will allow us the chance to offer our empty cells to NSW for a fee.

Mr Osborne is also reported as saying that the issue of using Cooma gaol is a joke. He said:

Why would we inject millions of ACT dollars into Cooma Jail?

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