CORRECTIONAL SERVICES

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Industry and Trade, Minister for Small Business, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Gambling) (14:20): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: As many members of this house are aware, the Correctional Services Act has been in operation since 1982. Whilst a series of amendments has been made to the legislation since that time the act in parts no longer complements contemporary best practice in correctional management.

In society we are increasingly dealing with more dangerous and determined criminals in our criminal justice system and serious and organised crime gangs. It is important that the appropriate proportionate legislative measures are available to manage the inherent risk that serious and violent offenders present.

I am pleased to inform the house today that cabinet has approved the drafting of amendments for the Correctional Services Act 1982 and the Correctional Services Regulations 2001. The proposed amendments are designed to increase public protection and increase safety and security in the prison system. The proposed changes reflect a particular focus on parolees. These proposed reforms are the most significant in the area of parole in nearly 30 years. The proposed laws will:

give police more information about parolees on their release;

give police power to arrest a parolee, whom they suspect to have breached parole, without a warrant and hold them for up to 12 hours;

give the chief executive of the Department for Correctional Services the authority to issue a warrant in addition to the Parole Board if a parolee has breached their conditions; and

compel departments to share information to ensure a rapid response when dealing with parolees and prevent parolees interacting with prisoners.

We want to speed up the process of issuing warrants and enable departments to share information. We want to make it quicker and easier to get criminals, who breach their parole, off our streets. This is all about improving public safety by giving authorities the ability to act at the first sign of trouble. It is not appropriate to wait while an offender breaches their parole conditions, reoffends, and, in some cases, puts members of the public in danger.

Parole is a privilege, not a right. Community safety should always be the paramount concern, and these proposed changes reflect that principle. We need to ensure that we have the mechanisms in place for a rapid and coordinated response to deal with offenders who breach their parole conditions. I want police to have all the information they need to do their job quickly and safely. As part of these sweeping reforms I intend to consider other changes in the drafting process, such as:

providing for the introduction of illicit drugs into a prison to be deemed an aggravated offence;

expanding the powers of correctional officers to be allowed to search visitors outside the prison walls, including in visitor car parks in the gazetted prison reserve;

preventing a person released from prison from visiting a prisoner within 12 months of their release without the consent of the chief executive;

requiring parolees convicted of child sex offences to automatically disclose their offending to prospective employers;

enabling the Parole Board to include electronic monitoring by the department as a condition of parole;

allowing the department's chief executive to release information on prisoners or offenders without their permission if they pose a serious risk or threat to public safety; and

preventing a parolee from depositing money into another prisoner's trust account for a period of time.

This is a difficult and controversial area. It is imperative that we get it right. That is why throughout the drafting process I will undertake extensive consultation with all concerned parties, including the Attorney-General, the Parole Board, police, relevant unions and the Victims' Rights Commissioner.

The Rann government's priority has and always will be the protection of the innocent. I look forward to bringing in laws which reflect that priority.