Re-imprisonment: a no-win costly mistake

“There is no strong evidence that keeping more people in gaol results in proportionately less crime in the community,” said Greens spokesperson on Corrective Services, Sylvia Hale MLC.

“With more than 10,000 people held in 57 gaols across the State at a yearly cost of $75,000 per prisoner, NSW is spending more than $1 billion annually on its prison system.

“BOCSAR’s analysis suggests that a 10% decrease in the number of NSW prisoners returning to gaol would result in savings of more than $28 million each year.

“A 10% reduction in the State’s prison population is not impossible if programs to prevent re-offending are adequately funded and resourced. The entire community would reap enormous benefits if prisoners had ready access to literacy, vocational and health services while in gaol, and drug treatment, jobs, and housing assistance when released.

“It is in nobody’s interests, other than private prison operators, to keep our prisons full. Almost all prisoners return to the community one day. Equipping prisoners for that return is a far more economically and socially rational approach than not providing services and simply hoping prisoners will not re-offend. The reality is that 64% of prisoners will do so.

“Each year, more people in NSW return to gaol than enter it for the first time.

“Building ever more gaols to lock up ever more people is not the answer. It’s time to redirect funding from building new prisons to programs that will keep people out of gaol or prevent their returning to gaol,” said Ms Hale.