In November 2024, the Western Australia prison watchdog highlighted issues of concern at Hakea prison, which is grappling with extreme overcrowding, understaffing, and unhygienic conditions.
According to the Office of Inspector of Custodial Services, Eamon Ryan, the facility has been under significant stress, with prisoners often forced to sleep on mattresses on the floor due to a 15% increase in the prison population in the past year.
Problems from overcrowding were particularly evident in the 45 consecutive days in 2024 when it operated above 100% capacity, leading to lockdowns, a lack of access to fresh air, exercise, and basic hygiene, with prisoners sharing cramped cells and a single toilet.
The report highlights the prison’s role in contributing to a larger crisis in WA’s justice system, which saw an increase in suicides, self-harm, and violence, including five deaths in custody at Hakea this year.
Ryan expressed concern about the “cruel and inhumane” treatment of prisoners, noting that the harsh conditions have led to anger, serious mental health issues, and destructive behaviours. He also cautioned that the cycle would persist in the absence of rehabilitation measures.
In response, the Department of Justice has made a committment to implement measures to improve conditions, including the recruitment of 300 new prison officers, and increasing the out-of-cell time for prisoners.
Ryan stressed that “substantial reform is needed to prevent further tragedies and address the systemic issues in WA’s prison systems”.
The Victorian Government has introduced a new Bill that creates a strict licensing scheme for the tobacco industry in Victoria. The Bill aims to provide more power to Victoria Police to prevent the illegal tobacco trade and builds on the Victoria Police Taskforce Lunar, through which the police have already seized $37 million worth of cash, vapes and illegal tobacco products.
The Bill will establish a licensing scheme so that tobacco can only be sold by licensed retailers. A licence will only be available for “fit and proper” persons who pass a strict test that includes an assessment of the applicant’s known associates and personal history.
The government claims that this Bill will protect businesses from being undercut by criminal syndicates. Through the Bill, the police will have increased powers to search and seize illicit products and they will also assist with the licensee assessment.
A new tobacco regulator will also be established. It will administer and monitor compliance with the obligations contained in the Bill. Any person who sells tobacco without a licence will face serious penalties, with a fine of up to $355,000 or up to 15 years in jail. Businesses who sell tobacco without a licence will face fines of more than $1.7 million.
The Northern Territory Government has begun a series of transfers of prisoners across the territory, with young people at the Alice Springs Youth Detention Centre being transferred to the new youth detention centre in Darwin, and up to 36 women already relocated from Alice Springs to Darwin.
Debbie Kilroy, CEO of Sisters Inside, has described the transfer of women from Alice Springs to Darwin as a “direct violation of the women's rights, placing significant barriers between the women, their families, and vital re-entry and support services."
Stolen Generations survivor William Roy Tilmouth has criticised the plan to move young people from Alice Springs to the Darwin detention facility:
"Taking you away from your country, your community, your family, your support group, your language, your identity ... the effects on the children are going to be lifelong and lasting.
"You'll have a lot of angry kids who become angry adults.”
The NT Corrections Minister has defended the plan, saying it would create additional beds for adults and enable women to be detained separately to male prisoners.
These moves come at a time of a prison population boom in the Northern Territory that has seen present facilities unable to cope, leading to record levels of overcrowding.
Almost 100 people have died in custody in NSW since the year began, including 23 Indigenous people, according to data collected by the Australian Institute of Criminology(AIC).
The AIC’s National Deaths in Custody Program has tracked at least 581 deaths since the royal commission in 1992.
Advocacy group Change the Record’s national director Blake Cansdale said that “tracking alone is not enough.”
Justice advocates said that these deaths have been met with indifference when they should have sparked a “national outcry”.
“These deaths are not just numbers” Cansdale said.
“They represent lives tragically lost, families grieving, and a national failure to uphold the rights and safety of First Nations peoples in Australia.”
Long Bay Correctional Centre, located south of Sydney CBD, saw protesters advocating against the ongoing First Nations deaths in custody earlier this month.
Paul Silva opened the protest by lamenting over the hundreds of Indigenous deaths since the royal commission into the matter handed over its final report in 1992.
“We, as First Nations people, have been standing up against the Australian system for 230 years,” the Dunghutti man said.
“This system is trying to kill off First Nations people in so-called Australia”.
In November 2024, the Western Australia prison watchdog highlighted issues of concern at Hakea prison, which is grappling with extreme overcrowding, understaffing, and unhygienic conditions.
According to the Office of Inspector of Custodial Services, Eamon Ryan, the facility has been under significant stress, with prisoners often forced to sleep on mattresses on the floor due to a 15% increase in the prison population in the past year.
Problems from overcrowding were particularly evident in the 45 consecutive days in 2024 when it operated above 100% capacity, leading to lockdowns, a lack of access to fresh air, exercise, and basic hygiene, with prisoners sharing cramped cells and a single toilet.
The report highlights the prison’s role in contributing to a larger crisis in WA’s justice system, which saw an increase in suicides, self-harm, and violence, including five deaths in custody at Hakea this year.
Ryan expressed concern about the “cruel and inhumane” treatment of prisoners, noting that the harsh conditions have led to anger, serious mental health issues, and destructive behaviours. He also cautioned that the cycle would persist in the absence of rehabilitation measures.
In response, the Department of Justice has made a committment to implement measures to improve conditions, including the recruitment of 300 new prison officers, and increasing the out-of-cell time for prisoners.
Ryan stressed that “substantial reform is needed to prevent further tragedies and address the systemic issues in WA’s prison systems”.
The Victorian Government has introduced a new Bill that creates a strict licensing scheme for the tobacco industry in Victoria. The Bill aims to provide more power to Victoria Police to prevent the illegal tobacco trade and builds on the Victoria Police Taskforce Lunar, through which the police have already seized $37 million worth of cash, vapes and illegal tobacco products.
The Bill will establish a licensing scheme so that tobacco can only be sold by licensed retailers. A licence will only be available for “fit and proper” persons who pass a strict test that includes an assessment of the applicant’s known associates and personal history.
The government claims that this Bill will protect businesses from being undercut by criminal syndicates. Through the Bill, the police will have increased powers to search and seize illicit products and they will also assist with the licensee assessment.
A new tobacco regulator will also be established. It will administer and monitor compliance with the obligations contained in the Bill. Any person who sells tobacco without a licence will face serious penalties, with a fine of up to $355,000 or up to 15 years in jail. Businesses who sell tobacco without a licence will face fines of more than $1.7 million.
The Northern Territory Government has begun a series of transfers of prisoners across the territory, with young people at the Alice Springs Youth Detention Centre being transferred to the new youth detention centre in Darwin, and up to 36 women already relocated from Alice Springs to Darwin.
Debbie Kilroy, CEO of Sisters Inside, has described the transfer of women from Alice Springs to Darwin as a “direct violation of the women's rights, placing significant barriers between the women, their families, and vital re-entry and support services."
Stolen Generations survivor William Roy Tilmouth has criticised the plan to move young people from Alice Springs to the Darwin detention facility:
"Taking you away from your country, your community, your family, your support group, your language, your identity ... the effects on the children are going to be lifelong and lasting.
"You'll have a lot of angry kids who become angry adults.”
The NT Corrections Minister has defended the plan, saying it would create additional beds for adults and enable women to be detained separately to male prisoners.
These moves come at a time of a prison population boom in the Northern Territory that has seen present facilities unable to cope, leading to record levels of overcrowding.
Almost 100 people have died in custody in NSW since the year began, including 23 Indigenous people, according to data collected by the Australian Institute of Criminology(AIC).
The AIC’s National Deaths in Custody Program has tracked at least 581 deaths since the royal commission in 1992.
Advocacy group Change the Record’s national director Blake Cansdale said that “tracking alone is not enough.”
Justice advocates said that these deaths have been met with indifference when they should have sparked a “national outcry”.
“These deaths are not just numbers” Cansdale said.
“They represent lives tragically lost, families grieving, and a national failure to uphold the rights and safety of First Nations peoples in Australia.”
Long Bay Correctional Centre, located south of Sydney CBD, saw protesters advocating against the ongoing First Nations deaths in custody earlier this month.
Paul Silva opened the protest by lamenting over the hundreds of Indigenous deaths since the royal commission into the matter handed over its final report in 1992.
“We, as First Nations people, have been standing up against the Australian system for 230 years,” the Dunghutti man said.
“This system is trying to kill off First Nations people in so-called Australia”.
A recent report has highlighted the unmet support needs of children with parents or caregivers in prison.
Entitled Living with a Parent in Prison: Learning From Young People, the report focuses on the lived experience of children who have experienced parental incarceration, acknowledging that the voices and views of these children are largely overlooked.
The report makes a number of findings, highlighting the importance of informal family relationships, children’s desire for “normal” activities, relationships of childhood to continue through the incarceration of a parent, and the need to recognise and promote the rights and autonomy of children separate to the rights of their parents or caregivers, including their right to access information and to be heard.
The report also makes a number of recommendations, including:
These recommendations and findings echo those of the 2022 Victorian Legislative Council inquiry into children affected by parental incarceration. Key recommendations from the inquiry include the need to more comprehensively consider the needs of children in decision-making relating to the criminal legal and detention systems, and the importance of facilitating and maintaining family and community connections.
The state government has recently announced changes to the prison phone system. Key features of the updated phone system include:
Cheaper Calls:
The fixed-line local call rate reduction has applied since October. The changes to national and mobile phone calls will be rolled out across correctional centres over the next 12 months.
Queensland Corrections stated in a media release that regular phone calls are a key factor to helping prisoners turn their lives around, and hearing the voices of loved ones encourages a better path and reducing likelihood of reoffending.
The Tasmanian Government has “deferred” its previous commitment to implement significant reform to address gambling-related harm.
Harm related to poker machine gambling is a significant issue in Tasmania, with data showing that losses from poker machines are concentrated in areas experiencing social disadvantage. Recent reports estimate that at least 15% of the Tasmanian population may be impacted by gambling-related harms.
The former treasurer, Michael Ferguson, made a commitment in 2022 to introduce significant changes to the operation of poker machines across the state. Under the new system, players would need to register for a card, with pre-set loss limits and mechanisms including mandatory breaks in play designed to limit gambling-related harms. The proposed changes would also allow players to track their spending on poker machines.
After heavy lobbying by the state’s hotels industry, Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff has walked back his government’s commitment, saying recently that there may be a need for a ‘more measured approach’. The government recently commissioned a review of the scheme by Deloitte to investigate the potential impact of the scheme on the hospitality sector, with advocates expecting the government to use the report as a cover to water down the most protective elements of the gaming card.
The government has now said they prefer to work with other states to come up with a solution. In making this announcement, they noted that a recent report (from a gaming operator) has revealed likely delays and significant costs related to the proposed scheme. This change in policy has been severely criticised by community groups and advocates.
Advocates are asking the government to remain firm on the commitments they have made to take action on problem gambling, circulating a letter signed by a number of prominent anti-gambling campaigners and community organisations to Tasmanian Members of Parliament. A petition has also been launched calling on the government to introduce the gaming card as originally announced.
The petition can be found here: https://haepetitions.parliament.tas.gov.au/haepet/Home/PetitionDetails/125?title=Petition%20Details
The South Australian Parliament has passed reforms to strengthen the state’s strangulation laws. The reforms come after a 2023 review found that too many cases had been discontinued due to a lack of clarity around what was required to prove the offence.
Strangulation was made a specific offence in South Australia in 2019. However, the act of strangulation was not explicitly defined in the legislation; instead it relied on a common law position from Queensland, which required proof that the victim’s breathing had been restricted.
South Australian Attorney-General Kyam Maher stated that this definition “does not recognise the inherent danger in restricting a person’s blood flow to the head, which can be just as harmful as restricting someone’s breath”.
The reforms passed this week will clarify, expand, and legislate the definition of strangulation.
It will now include instances where pressure applied to someone’s neck is capable of affecting the person’s breath or blood flow to their head. The reforms also establish an additional offence when the strangulation causes harm by rendering the person unconscious. This second offence may be punished by up to 10 years in jail.
Strangulation is widely recognised as an indicator of a high risk of lethality for women who are experiencing violence from their partners.
These reforms reflect the seriousness of the offence and strengthen the legal response to better hold perpetrators accountable for their actions.
A recent report has highlighted the unmet support needs of children with parents or caregivers in prison.
Entitled Living with a Parent in Prison: Learning From Young People, the report focuses on the lived experience of children who have experienced parental incarceration, acknowledging that the voices and views of these children are largely overlooked.
The report makes a number of findings, highlighting the importance of informal family relationships, children’s desire for “normal” activities, relationships of childhood to continue through the incarceration of a parent, and the need to recognise and promote the rights and autonomy of children separate to the rights of their parents or caregivers, including their right to access information and to be heard.
The report also makes a number of recommendations, including:
These recommendations and findings echo those of the 2022 Victorian Legislative Council inquiry into children affected by parental incarceration. Key recommendations from the inquiry include the need to more comprehensively consider the needs of children in decision-making relating to the criminal legal and detention systems, and the importance of facilitating and maintaining family and community connections.
The state government has recently announced changes to the prison phone system. Key features of the updated phone system include:
Cheaper Calls:
The fixed-line local call rate reduction has applied since October. The changes to national and mobile phone calls will be rolled out across correctional centres over the next 12 months.
Queensland Corrections stated in a media release that regular phone calls are a key factor to helping prisoners turn their lives around, and hearing the voices of loved ones encourages a better path and reducing likelihood of reoffending.
The Tasmanian Government has “deferred” its previous commitment to implement significant reform to address gambling-related harm.
Harm related to poker machine gambling is a significant issue in Tasmania, with data showing that losses from poker machines are concentrated in areas experiencing social disadvantage. Recent reports estimate that at least 15% of the Tasmanian population may be impacted by gambling-related harms.
The former treasurer, Michael Ferguson, made a commitment in 2022 to introduce significant changes to the operation of poker machines across the state. Under the new system, players would need to register for a card, with pre-set loss limits and mechanisms including mandatory breaks in play designed to limit gambling-related harms. The proposed changes would also allow players to track their spending on poker machines.
After heavy lobbying by the state’s hotels industry, Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff has walked back his government’s commitment, saying recently that there may be a need for a ‘more measured approach’. The government recently commissioned a review of the scheme by Deloitte to investigate the potential impact of the scheme on the hospitality sector, with advocates expecting the government to use the report as a cover to water down the most protective elements of the gaming card.
The government has now said they prefer to work with other states to come up with a solution. In making this announcement, they noted that a recent report (from a gaming operator) has revealed likely delays and significant costs related to the proposed scheme. This change in policy has been severely criticised by community groups and advocates.
Advocates are asking the government to remain firm on the commitments they have made to take action on problem gambling, circulating a letter signed by a number of prominent anti-gambling campaigners and community organisations to Tasmanian Members of Parliament. A petition has also been launched calling on the government to introduce the gaming card as originally announced.
The petition can be found here: https://haepetitions.parliament.tas.gov.au/haepet/Home/PetitionDetails/125?title=Petition%20Details
The South Australian Parliament has passed reforms to strengthen the state’s strangulation laws. The reforms come after a 2023 review found that too many cases had been discontinued due to a lack of clarity around what was required to prove the offence.
Strangulation was made a specific offence in South Australia in 2019. However, the act of strangulation was not explicitly defined in the legislation; instead it relied on a common law position from Queensland, which required proof that the victim’s breathing had been restricted.
South Australian Attorney-General Kyam Maher stated that this definition “does not recognise the inherent danger in restricting a person’s blood flow to the head, which can be just as harmful as restricting someone’s breath”.
The reforms passed this week will clarify, expand, and legislate the definition of strangulation.
It will now include instances where pressure applied to someone’s neck is capable of affecting the person’s breath or blood flow to their head. The reforms also establish an additional offence when the strangulation causes harm by rendering the person unconscious. This second offence may be punished by up to 10 years in jail.
Strangulation is widely recognised as an indicator of a high risk of lethality for women who are experiencing violence from their partners.
These reforms reflect the seriousness of the offence and strengthen the legal response to better hold perpetrators accountable for their actions.
Including tough bail laws being introduced in Victoria, the South Australian Government ruling out raising the age of criminal responsibility, a new parole board president appointed in Queensland and more.
The Australian Federal election is coming up. This is about voting for the Prime Minister and other federal politicians. It will be held on 3 May 2025.
“We can’t get information about how a party or candidate’s policies must impact prisoners,” Kelly told About Time. ‘Prison officers also will not provide us with any information as it is seen as political.”
Prison work differs across the country.
Help us get About Time off the ground. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
Help us get About Time off the ground. All donations are tax deductible and will be vital in providing an essential resource for people in prison and their loved ones.
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