CLP to Maintain Berrimah Prison

The Country Liberals would keep Berrimah Prison and establish a low security prison farm near Katherine if elected to on August 9th.

“Labor’s plans to bulldoze Berrimah jail and spend $300 million on a new prison is a massive waste of money,” says Terry Mills, Leader of the Country Liberals.

“Building a new jail would be one of the most irresponsible uses of public money seen in the Territory.

“Berrimah is perfectly adequate as a medium to high security prison - it’s just overcrowded.

“Many of the inmates present no risk of absconding at would benefit greatly from being put to work rather than sitting around the cells smoking and playing cards.

“Rather than putting low security prisoners into a system where they learn no useful skills, its time we developed an intensive work farm system to accustom prisoners to the disciple needed to hold down a job

“68pc of the Territory’s prisoners have been in jail before; that rate of re-offending is 30pc higher than the Australian average.

“That shows our current system is failing hopelessly and costing us dearly. The cost of keeping a prisoner in jail in the Territory is about $73,000 a year.

“Constructing a prison farm with a 200 inmate capacity near Katherine would end the overcrowding at Berrimah and give low security prisoners the opportunity of acquiring useful life skills at the same time.

“Katherine is the best location for such a prison due to its proximity to many agricultural jobs, the availability of land and it is closer to the families of many Indigenous prisoners who make up the bulk of our prison population.

“Prisoners who are skilled are more attractive to employers on release and once employed are less likely to fall back into a life of crime.

“Education in prison is not a reward for those who have broken our laws: it is an opportunity to give them a second chance at life once they have paid their debt for the crime they committed.”

2008-07-30