❓ Question regarding the Greenough Regional Prison riot and breakout, specifically challenging the Minister's explanation of the causes and referencing previous government's actions. The Minister's answer deflects blame and accuses the previous government of mismanagement.
AnsweredQoN 1012Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
GREENOUGH REGIONAL
PRISON — CRITICAL INCIDENT REVIEW
1012. Mrs L.M. HARVEY to the Minister for Corrective
Services:
I refer to comments made earlier
today in this house by both the minister and the Premier in which they both
blamed the design of Greenough Regional Prison—namely, the fence
between the men's and women's units—for the 12-hour
siege, riot and biggest prison breakout in Western Australia's history.
Can the minister explain why the first riot and breakout was in July 2018, six
years after the women's unit was established at Greenough?
PRISON — CRITICAL INCIDENT REVIEW
1012. Mrs L.M. HARVEY to the Minister for Corrective
Services:
I refer to comments made earlier
today in this house by both the minister and the Premier in which they both
blamed the design of Greenough Regional Prison—namely, the fence
between the men's and women's units—for the 12-hour
siege, riot and biggest prison breakout in Western Australia's history.
Can the minister explain why the first riot and breakout was in July 2018, six
years after the women's unit was established at Greenough?
AnswerView source ↗
I will just correct the member.
Again, along with all members in this house, I urge her to read the report
before she surmises what actually happened. The reasons for the riot and the
reasons for the escape were not anything to do with the fence in between —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : It was not anything to do with the
fence.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The poor
construction of the fence and the location of the women's prison —
Mr D.T. Redman interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Warren–Blackwood!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The cheaper
fence and the poor construction of the female prison and its location next to
the male prison allowed easy access. That is what we said. That is what the
Premier said. That is what I said. That is what Neil Morgan said when the
Liberal Party was in government and did nothing about it. The member for
Cottesloe, that expert in the area of corrections, sitting down at North
Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club, being the expert on corrections, indicated to
the house, ''Oh well, it never happened before.'' No, of course,
it did not happen before; nor did any other riots around Western Australia
during that year. How many riots have there been of that scale? There have been
quite a few, and many, many under the responsibility of the members for
Scarborough and Warren–Blackwood. One thing did not lead to another;
just as the report says, there were a number of reasons leading up to that
riot.
It
is like the issues that the member for Dawesville and the Leader of the
Opposition have raised about Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services
reports and Corruption and Crime Commission reports. It is the one thing that
they forget to tell the house when they are criticising me and saying that I should
stand down and say, ''Look at all those OICS reports and all those CCC
reports.'' One thing they forget to say about those reports is that only
two of them refer to our period in office.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The rest of
them are talking —
Mr Z.R.F. Kirkup interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Dawesville, I call you to order.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The rest of
them are talking about the history—I have been through this at length
in this house, member for Dawesville—of the poor behaviour and
investment, and problems associated with your terms in office in controlling
the portfolio of corrective services; problems that went to a staff freeze in
2015, something that we are still dealing with. The opposition has talked about
not having enough full-time equivalents, but since being in government we have
put on 164 officers and over 250 are on their way. Why are those people being
employed? It is because the member for Riverton put on a staff freeze in 2015
and we are playing catch-up. They talk about the overtime blowout. Why did we
have an overtime blowout? It is because you guys did not employ anybody and
just continued to use overtime to run the prisons. That was the problem. The
opposition's view is: let us hang the minister because he has the
audacity to say, ''You should live within your budget.'' That is
the argument the opposition is putting forward.
Mr Z.R.F. Kirkup interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Dawesville.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : Hang the
minister because he has the audacity to say, ''Live within your budget.''
That is a ridiculous argument.
The other thing that was pointed out
by the Treasurer, one of the real criminal things that the former government
did to us, was to load us with up with $380 million worth of fiscal cuts in the
out years—$380 million worth of fiscal cuts!
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : It is all
there.
Mr R.S. Love interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Moore, I call you to order for the second time.
Ms R. Saffioti : They've
never understood budgeting.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : They have
never understood budgeting. That is one of the most criminal things that has
occurred. They manipulated the budget figures by loading up in the out years
$380 million, booked against the Department of Justice. That is what you did;
that is what you did.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : That is what
the opposition did.
Mr R.S. Love interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Moore, I call you to order for the third time.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : They have the
audacity to come in here and say, ''Well, we're not in
government now. You're in government now. Why aren't you fixing
it, and sack the minister''.
The SPEAKER : Wind it up,
minister.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : That is the
position of the opposition. You guys are an absolute disgrace! At least I take
responsibility —
Several members interjected.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : At least I take
responsibility for my portfolio, which you guys never did.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members! That is
the end of question time.
Again, along with all members in this house, I urge her to read the report
before she surmises what actually happened. The reasons for the riot and the
reasons for the escape were not anything to do with the fence in between —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : It was not anything to do with the
fence.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The poor
construction of the fence and the location of the women's prison —
Mr D.T. Redman interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Warren–Blackwood!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The cheaper
fence and the poor construction of the female prison and its location next to
the male prison allowed easy access. That is what we said. That is what the
Premier said. That is what I said. That is what Neil Morgan said when the
Liberal Party was in government and did nothing about it. The member for
Cottesloe, that expert in the area of corrections, sitting down at North
Cottesloe Surf Life Saving Club, being the expert on corrections, indicated to
the house, ''Oh well, it never happened before.'' No, of course,
it did not happen before; nor did any other riots around Western Australia
during that year. How many riots have there been of that scale? There have been
quite a few, and many, many under the responsibility of the members for
Scarborough and Warren–Blackwood. One thing did not lead to another;
just as the report says, there were a number of reasons leading up to that
riot.
It
is like the issues that the member for Dawesville and the Leader of the
Opposition have raised about Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services
reports and Corruption and Crime Commission reports. It is the one thing that
they forget to tell the house when they are criticising me and saying that I should
stand down and say, ''Look at all those OICS reports and all those CCC
reports.'' One thing they forget to say about those reports is that only
two of them refer to our period in office.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The rest of
them are talking —
Mr Z.R.F. Kirkup interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Dawesville, I call you to order.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : The rest of
them are talking about the history—I have been through this at length
in this house, member for Dawesville—of the poor behaviour and
investment, and problems associated with your terms in office in controlling
the portfolio of corrective services; problems that went to a staff freeze in
2015, something that we are still dealing with. The opposition has talked about
not having enough full-time equivalents, but since being in government we have
put on 164 officers and over 250 are on their way. Why are those people being
employed? It is because the member for Riverton put on a staff freeze in 2015
and we are playing catch-up. They talk about the overtime blowout. Why did we
have an overtime blowout? It is because you guys did not employ anybody and
just continued to use overtime to run the prisons. That was the problem. The
opposition's view is: let us hang the minister because he has the
audacity to say, ''You should live within your budget.'' That is
the argument the opposition is putting forward.
Mr Z.R.F. Kirkup interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Dawesville.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : Hang the
minister because he has the audacity to say, ''Live within your budget.''
That is a ridiculous argument.
The other thing that was pointed out
by the Treasurer, one of the real criminal things that the former government
did to us, was to load us with up with $380 million worth of fiscal cuts in the
out years—$380 million worth of fiscal cuts!
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : It is all
there.
Mr R.S. Love interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Moore, I call you to order for the second time.
Ms R. Saffioti : They've
never understood budgeting.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : They have
never understood budgeting. That is one of the most criminal things that has
occurred. They manipulated the budget figures by loading up in the out years
$380 million, booked against the Department of Justice. That is what you did;
that is what you did.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members!
Mr F.M. LOGAN : That is what
the opposition did.
Mr R.S. Love interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Moore, I call you to order for the third time.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : They have the
audacity to come in here and say, ''Well, we're not in
government now. You're in government now. Why aren't you fixing
it, and sack the minister''.
The SPEAKER : Wind it up,
minister.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : That is the
position of the opposition. You guys are an absolute disgrace! At least I take
responsibility —
Several members interjected.
Mr F.M. LOGAN : At least I take
responsibility for my portfolio, which you guys never did.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Members! That is
the end of question time.
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