❓ Mr Leary questions the Minister for Corrective Services about a delayed response to an Inspector of Custodial Services report on Albany Regional Prison. The Minister claims the department responded and asserts the prison is adequately staffed due to local recruitment efforts.
AnsweredQoN 462Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Albany Regional Prison—Inspector of Custodial
Services report
462. Mr Scott Leary to
the Minister for Corrective Services:
I refer to the
Inspector of Custodial Services report 2024
Inspection of Albany Regional Prison that was provided to the government
in October 2024 and tabled in Parliament in April this year.
(1) Why did the Department of Justice repeatedly
fail to provide a response before the report was published, and why has the
department still not responded to the inspector's 15 recommendations almost a
year after the report was handed to the government?
(2) What message does it send to corrective
service officers, prison staff and the Albany community when the government
clearly ignores a report that warns that staffing shortages, stretched
infrastructure and safety risks are putting prisons under serious pressure?
Services report
462. Mr Scott Leary to
the Minister for Corrective Services:
I refer to the
Inspector of Custodial Services report 2024
Inspection of Albany Regional Prison that was provided to the government
in October 2024 and tabled in Parliament in April this year.
(1) Why did the Department of Justice repeatedly
fail to provide a response before the report was published, and why has the
department still not responded to the inspector's 15 recommendations almost a
year after the report was handed to the government?
(2) What message does it send to corrective
service officers, prison staff and the Albany community when the government
clearly ignores a report that warns that staffing shortages, stretched
infrastructure and safety risks are putting prisons under serious pressure?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for the
question. I am pretty certain that the department has responded. I am not sure
about the member's suggestion that it has not. That aside, I will check and
confirm. I can say with regard to Albany Regional Prison that it is not short
of prison officers at all. Part of the reason for that is that we have done two
or maybe three rounds of local recruitment. The member for Albany will be
familiar with this because it has been an incredible success. We have done
regional recruiting and training of prison officers in the town in regions
where it might be difficult otherwise to get accommodation. If you were to
train people in the metropolitan area at the academy, you might find they then
have difficulty getting housing. Right across the state it is a bit a challenge,
but in some of these regional towns, it is particularly acute.
Prison officers found that if
they go to the town, they benefit from a couple of things. First, a person
already lives there, so they have accommodation, so they do not have to
confront that challenge. Second, in the case of Albany, because it has been
such a successful prison for such a long time, they found that family members
and friends are the best recruiting tool. Prison officers enjoy their work and
do a wonderful job, and I have to commend them. I will just put it on the
record now that our prison officers not only in Albany, but also right across
the system do confront a really tough gig. It is not an easy job, particularly when the prison population is high. It is
very confronting and challenging, but they do an excellent job. Those guys
in Albany are fantastic. It number of applications for the courses resulted in
them being full, and all but one—
Mr Adam Hort interjected.
The Speaker: Member for Kalamunda!
Mr Paul Papalia: The member for Kalamunda might want
to listen to this. I know he has not been there—
Mr Adam Hort interjected.
The Speaker: Member for Kalamunda!
Mr Paul Papalia: The member might want to listen to
the outcome of the courses that were run locally. All but one of the
participants completed the courses successfully. I understand that person came
down from the metro area but did not have the support. He hoped to get down
there but it did not work out. But all the other participants have completed courses
and gone on to work at the prison. It is a great prison. It is really well run,
and it is fully staffed.
question. I am pretty certain that the department has responded. I am not sure
about the member's suggestion that it has not. That aside, I will check and
confirm. I can say with regard to Albany Regional Prison that it is not short
of prison officers at all. Part of the reason for that is that we have done two
or maybe three rounds of local recruitment. The member for Albany will be
familiar with this because it has been an incredible success. We have done
regional recruiting and training of prison officers in the town in regions
where it might be difficult otherwise to get accommodation. If you were to
train people in the metropolitan area at the academy, you might find they then
have difficulty getting housing. Right across the state it is a bit a challenge,
but in some of these regional towns, it is particularly acute.
Prison officers found that if
they go to the town, they benefit from a couple of things. First, a person
already lives there, so they have accommodation, so they do not have to
confront that challenge. Second, in the case of Albany, because it has been
such a successful prison for such a long time, they found that family members
and friends are the best recruiting tool. Prison officers enjoy their work and
do a wonderful job, and I have to commend them. I will just put it on the
record now that our prison officers not only in Albany, but also right across
the system do confront a really tough gig. It is not an easy job, particularly when the prison population is high. It is
very confronting and challenging, but they do an excellent job. Those guys
in Albany are fantastic. It number of applications for the courses resulted in
them being full, and all but one—
Mr Adam Hort interjected.
The Speaker: Member for Kalamunda!
Mr Paul Papalia: The member for Kalamunda might want
to listen to this. I know he has not been there—
Mr Adam Hort interjected.
The Speaker: Member for Kalamunda!
Mr Paul Papalia: The member might want to listen to
the outcome of the courses that were run locally. All but one of the
participants completed the courses successfully. I understand that person came
down from the metro area but did not have the support. He hoped to get down
there but it did not work out. But all the other participants have completed courses
and gone on to work at the prison. It is a great prison. It is really well run,
and it is fully staffed.
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