Page 3765 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 24 August 2011
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MR CORBELL: No, they have not.
Mr Hargreaves interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Doszpot has a supplementary.
Mr Hargreaves interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Mr Hargreaves!
MR DOSZPOT: Minister, Mr Buchanan also said he was run out of town. Minister, why was Mr Buchanan run out of town?
MR CORBELL: He was not, and I refer Mr Doszpot to my previous answers.
Alexander Maconochie Centre—Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander detainees
MS BRESNAN: My question is to the Attorney-General and is about people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent being held at the Alexander Maconochie Centre. Minister, I recently received correspondence from you confirming that, about a month ago, seven of the eight detainees held in the crisis support unit were of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent. While one person may have been held for safety reasons, at least six of the eight were there due to mental health concerns. Minister, is the government concerned by this figure?
MR CORBELL: The government is always concerned to see a high percentage of any prisoner category in the CSU, and it is of concern to me and to the government that there is at this point in time a higher than average number of Indigenous persons in the CSU. The circumstances around this are unusual. It is not normally the case that we see such a high number of Indigenous prisoners in the CSU.
That said, I am confident that the prisoners that are in the CSU have been appropriately assessed as needing to be there. Corrective Services keep these matters under constant supervision.
MR SPEAKER: A supplementary, Ms Bresnan?
MS BRESNAN: Minister, does the AMC require a second Aboriginal case manager, given that Aboriginal people in prison often have problems that are more complex than other prisoners?
MR CORBELL: We have dedicated personnel to assist Indigenous prisoners with the specific issues that confront them while in custody. The government remains open to whether or not additional resources are required, but the position that Ms Bresnan has raised is not a matter that has been brought to my attention, to the best of my knowledge.
MS HUNTER: A supplementary.
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