MOUNT GAMBIER PRISON

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS (15:50): Recently, I attended the opening of Mount Gambier Prison's new groundbreaking accommodation facility, which was officially opened by the Minister for Correctional Services, the Hon. Michael O'Brien. Other guests included the chief executive of the Department for Correctional Services, Mr David Brown; the Commissioner of Corrective Services New South Wales, Peter Severin; the Deputy Commissioner of SAPOL, Grant Stevens; the Mayor of the District Council of Grant, Richard Sage; the member for Mount Gambier, Mr Don Pegler MP; the member for MacKillop, Mr Mitch Williams MP; the federal member for Barker, Mr Anthony Pasin MP; and the acting CEO of the City of Mount Gambier Council, Mr Grant Humphries.

Strangely, the Mayor of Mount Gambier, Mr Steve Perryman, chose to not attend the opening, despite the positive economic impact that the expansion of the Mount Gambier Prison has had and will continue to have on Mount Gambier and its surrounding districts. The $22.9 million expansion created a significant number of jobs during its construction. Not only that, but more than 30 new positions have been created to meet the day-to-day operational requirements of the expansion, and around 20 new jobs will be created as part of the new 60-bed expansion that was announced in this year's state budget. Contrary to Mr Perryman's view, the occasion was certainly not a party. The prison's new expansion has been named the Waawor Unit, which in the language of the traditional owners, the Boandik, means blue lake.

The new prison accommodation is the first of its kind here in South Australia and uses modular containers. The new unit can accommodate up to 108 prisoners. The expansion includes 20 12-metre containers that are fitted with prison-grade fittings to a medium security standard. This building method is much faster and less expensive than traditional building methods. The modular accommodation is approximately $40,000 cheaper per bed compared to a traditional build. The modular style of accommodation is not new; it has been used by our defence forces and in other prisons around the country for over a decade.

Mount Gambier is the largest prison expansion in South Australia in a quarter of a century, since the opening of Mobilong Prison in 1987. We are an ageing population and our prisoners are a part of that population, and they too are ageing. In addition to the standard accommodation, part of the new facility has been specifically designed for elderly and infirm prisoners and those with mobility issues. The prison's high security perimeter has been extended and a new industrial kitchen has been built to meet the increased capacity. When the planned 60-bed unit is completed, Mount Gambier Prison will become the third largest prison in the state.

The Mount Gambier expansion is part of a suite of expansions and upgrades that are being rolled out across the state to ensure the government can meet any demand imposed by growth in prisoner numbers. In 2011 the Port Lincoln Prison was upgraded. Last year, the government opened and 90-bed unit at Port Augusta Prison, and earlier this year a new high-tech, high security gatehouse was opened at Yatala Labour Prison. This is in addition to a new 20-bed accommodation unit at the Adelaide Women's Prison (due to come on line early next year) and the high dependency unit and health centre at Yatala Labour Prison in 2015.

All this construction means jobs for local businesses, contractors and subcontractors and also, importantly, jobs in Corrections. The Mount Gambier Prison extension was an opportunity for me to see first-hand the implementation of the modular container-type of construction here in South Australia. The Waawor Unit at Mount Gambier Prison represents best practice in safe, secure and humane treatment for our prisoners.