INDIGENOUS OFFENDERS

The Hon. S.G. WADE (14:37): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation in relation to Aboriginal disadvantage.

Leave granted.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: On Thursday 7 February 2013 in this place, the Hon. Tammy Franks brought to the minister's attention that, as at June 2011 in South Australia, Aboriginal people were 16.7 times more likely to be in prison than other South Australians. In response to the Hon. Tammy Franks' question, the minister said:

We have come a long way in many areas and evidence-based policy is central to us in helping to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians across a number of variables, including of course the disproportionate detention of Aboriginal people in prisons and youth justice centres.

The minister went on to say:

It is true to say that we face significant challenges, but the most recent report on government services highlighted that our Aboriginal prison population, while under the national average of about 26.5 per cent, is still unacceptably high, with an average of 23.7 per cent.

The minister referenced RoGS (Report on Government Services). In 2010-11, the Report on Government Services shows that there were 2,628.2 Indigenous prisoners per 100,000 adult population, compared with 153.6 for all prisoners. As the Hon. Tammy Franks said, the Indigenous rate is almost 17 times that of all South Australians. In 2000-01, the RoGS report shows that, in the most recent full year of the Liberal government, there were 1,622.8 Indigenous prisoners per 100,000 population, compared with 115 for all prisoners; that is, the Indigenous rate was 14 times the rate for non-Indigenous Australians.

Therefore, in summary, over the last 10 years with Labor in government, the gap in Aboriginal disadvantage, as measured by the ratio of Indigenous imprisonment to non-Indigenous imprisonment, has actually increased from 14 times to 17 times. I ask the minister: when can we expect to see at least an arrest in the increasing gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal South Australians in terms of imprisonment?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation) (14:40): I think I will take that question on notice for the minister for corrections in another place and bring back a response.