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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2010-07-20 Daily Xml
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PRISONS, DRUG USE

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (14:59): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for State/Local Government Relations, representing the Minister for Correctional Services, a question about drug use in prisons.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE: I will paraphrase a segment that ran on FIVEaa on 20 October 2009. A caller to the morning program alleged that he had developed a drug habit whilst in gaol and that at the Cadell and Mobilong prisons in particular drugs are dropped off to the gaol, the prisoners have mobile phones and are virtually 'running the show up there'.

In response to that interview, my colleague the Hon. Dennis Hood spoke on the program expressing the view of Family First (and no doubt most South Australians) that there should be a zero incidence rate of drugs in prison. The Minister for Correctional Services immediately replied:

I agree with Dennis completely. There is zero tolerance for drugs in prison. We monitor prisoners' phone calls, we monitor their mail, we have the latest in surveillance equipment on our prison perimeters.

That may be so, but information I have received from whistleblowers in recent weeks indicates that a blind eye is being turned to illicit drug testing in prisons and the minister's zero tolerance regime is being hoodwinked. My questions therefore are:

1. Will the minister immediately investigate these allegations about subversion of prison drug testing, particularly with respect to urine tests and inappropriate practices and procedures?

2. Will the minister guarantee that any allegations of cover-up or corruption will be followed through and, where sufficient evidence exists, referred to South Australian police for prosecution?

3. Can the minister confirm that the page 24 story from the Sunday Mail of 18 July 2010 does not relate to South Australian prison experience; namely, that (a) prisoners cannot request illicit drugs over the internet; and (b) that South Australian prisoners do not have Facebook, other social networking or internet access at all?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister Assisting the Premier in Public Sector Management) (15:02): I thank the honourable member for his question and I will refer it to the Minister for Correctional Services in another place and bring back a response. Of course, if the honourable member does wish specific allegations to be investigated, then clearly it will be helpful to have any information that the honourable member might have in relation to those allegations so that they can be investigated.

For about a six-month period back in the mid-nineties, I was shadow minister for correctional services and I remember visiting the prison at Mount Gambier. It is quite amazing to see the means by which prisoners are able to smuggle drugs in. One of the ways they were doing it was getting tennis balls and other things that had drugs in them over the fence, and there were a whole lot of other ways.

That was 15 years ago. It was a problem then, and I am sure that it is a never-ending battle to try to keep drugs out of gaol. I know that my colleague the Minister for Correctional Services is very committed to ensuring that everything is done to prevent that happening but I will be happy to refer the question to him and bring back a response.

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