Prisoner Support

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (14:07): My question is also to the Minister for Correctional Services. What steps are taken for and with a prisoner eligible for parole or completing a custodial sentence to guarantee they have suitable accommodation on release and, where necessary, supported accommodation for people identified with mental health issues to assist averting the highest possibility of prevention, reoffence and return to prison?

The SPEAKER: There was a lot in that.

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD (Gibson—Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (14:08): There was a lot in that and I thank the member very much for her question because I know that she has a great interest in this, and we have had a lot of offline discussions—

An honourable member interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD: —and I am keen to continue to have those discussions with her. There are a number of groups out there that do some marvellous work—OARS being one of them of course—to help people assimilate back into the community and making sure we do that. I am working very closely with the minister involved in that area as well to make sure we have really good housing programs to get people and not see them return to prison. There is a bipartisan agreement on the 10by20 program, which we very much support, and the opposition were supportive of as well, to make sure that we don't see prisoners go back into the system. I am very happy to sit down with the member and have a discussion and work through those programs.