Page 1539 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 4 May 2016
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$355.37 five years ago to $296 in the last reporting period—and you would hope so, as the numbers have increased, at a rough guess, by in excess of 100, if not more. I do not have the accurate figures in front of me at the moment. We have had substantial capital works out there and the jail continues to be nearing that capacity threshold. Of course, with that, the more people you cram in there, the less it costs to run each day. That does not necessarily illustrate improvement in management or improvement in efficiency regarding the way the facility is being run.
We look forward to seeing the outcomes of the inquiry that the minister has initiated into Indigenous incarceration rates and what is going to be done to try to address this issue. Minister Rattenbury, Minister Corbell and other ministers are responsible, and these decisions are being made and these policies are being implemented by their hand. The opposition can highlight what we see as faults, flaws and failings, but the real activity is done by those in government and those in the ministry and in cabinet. August will be right at the death knell of this parliament, but I am sure that corrections management will continue to be a big issue as we move forward.
The escape rate statistic is 0.26 for the 2015-16 year to date, after 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 having an escape rate of zero. Zero is what the community expects. Zero is the benchmark. Anything higher than that is a failure of procedure and a failure of policy. There has been a failure in the system somewhere if that escape rate is anything above zero.
Mr Rattenbury dwelled on Mr Seselja’s comments in the past about prisoners who broke out of their accommodation at the AMC but asked to be let back in. It is an alarming thought in the first instance that they are able to leave an area where they are supposed to be incarcerated, regardless of whether they sought to leave the prison grounds or not. There was a story in my time in this Assembly of a prisoner who broke out of his cottage accommodation to go and retrieve drugs. That did not count as an escape attempt because he had every intention of going back, and did so, but he was getting out of a secure area after hours to go and retrieve contraband to help facilitate further crimes whilst in jail. It is just mind boggling on so many levels that that does not constitute a serious failing.
It seems that so long as there is a perimeter fence around the AMC, Mr Rattenbury will not be happy. It is the “softly, softly, treat them gently” approach. Actually, they are probably just messed up, poor people that have had some poor decisions made for them. I understand there are often very complex individuals who enter our corrections system, but they have been sent there by the courts, by the judiciary, for a breach of law. With that comes a punishment and also an opportunity for rehabilitation. Unless it is treated as such, we will continue to see the same failings year on year that have plagued this prison since it opened. I commend my original motion to the Assembly.
Amendment agreed to.
Motion, as amended, agreed to.
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