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Legislative Council - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2016-09-28 Daily Xml
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Question Time

Prison Violence

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Leader of the Opposition) (14:29): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Correctional Services a question regarding the increase in prison violence.

Leave granted.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: In response to a question from my honourable friend Mr Andrew McLachlan, the minister stated twice, in absolute terms, that there was no correlation between prisoner overcrowding and the recent increase in prison assaults. However, I refer to an article on 27 December 2015 printed in The Advertiser—just shortly before the honourable minister was anointed by one of the faceless men in the Labor Party to become a member of the Legislative Council. This article printed in The Advertiser stated that the union representing the correctional services officers, the PSA, highlighted, and I quote:

…that increases in violent incidents were not surprising, given the continued overcrowding of SA prisons.

Given this, my question to the minister is: does the minister accept that his comments are at total odds with the PSA, which represents all correctional services officers?

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS (Minister for Police, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Road Safety) (14:30): I thank the honourable member for his question. Of course, this government enjoys a good, productive working relationship with the PSA. I talk to the PSA rather regularly, as the professional representatives of the employees that work within the Department of Correctional Services. I stated yesterday, in an effort to give a direct reply to the Hon. Mr McLachlan's question, that we have not seen any evidence to suggest at all that there has been an increase in prisoner violence that is somehow related to overcrowding.

I know that the opposition would like to think that that was the case and will, no doubt, try to muddy the waters to suggest that is the case, but my answer was rather unequivocal yesterday and I don't resile from that at all. I have made it very clear that I haven't seen any evidence that suggests there has somehow been an increase in prison violence, that is occurring at the South Australian Department for Correctional Services, that is, in any way, related to prison overcrowding.

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