Mr STIRLING - 1998-02-24
Madam Speaker, I seek leave to table a memo, dated 12 February 1998, from the Prison Officers Association to the Commissioner of Correctional Services, Mr David Moore.
Leave granted.
Mr STIRLING: Does the minister agree with Superintendent Brown of the Alice Springs Correctional Centre that the department is 10 years behind the times, that prison officers are not much better than MSS security guards, and that future promotions will go to Victorian fast-trackers who will become the department's middle management? Is this the minister's opinion too? If not, what does he intend to do about these statements that are destroying morale at the jail?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, as usual, the member for Nhulunbuy has quoted selectively from a discussion that was held by the superintendent of the Alice Springs Correctional Centre with a number of prison officer staff. This incident has been fully discussed by the commissioner, Dave Moore, who was in Alice Springs last weekend, and the prison superintendent. The commissioner reported back to me yesterday on this matter. There is no doubt in my mind and the mind of the commissioner that some small-minded people in the union managed to take some of the comments that were made by the staff completely out of context.
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Some of the claims that the member for Nhulunbuy has been making over the last few days have been absolutely outrageous. He has this ability to go into the community and ...
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr POOLE: He has the ability to make mischievous statements. An example is his reference to the use of CS gas ...
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr POOLE: ... which has been thoroughly investigated by the department. In actual fact, at the time of the alleged incident, no officer in the whole of the prison system, whether they be union people, prison wardens, management or superintendents, ever made a request to use gas. The honourable member has been very mischievous in many of the things that he has said. He seems to think ...
Mr Stirling: Answer the question. Do you agree with Brown?
Mr POOLE: I certainly support Superintendent Brown. I certainly support the management and the staff.
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr POOLE: You don't like it, do you, Syd?
The member for Nhulunbuy also made the statement, which was very demoralising to prison officers in general, that they allow Aboriginal prisoners in the minimum security areas to drink. That has been rebutted by the many officers to whom I have spoken over the past few days. In fact, all prisoners are regularly breath-tested. There has been no evidence to suggest that anybody in minimum security has been drinking.
Further, the honourable member, who represents Aboriginal Territorians, would be well aware that Aboriginal prisoners far prefer to sleep on mattresses outside in the open air which they can do at the minimum security cottages. Because of that, he has his mind in the gutter. He issued press releases and said on radio that they are fornicating, that they are bringing women on to the prison property. There is no evidence of that whatsoever. He is completely misleading the general public. He is doing a major disservice to his union mates in Alice Springs. They certainly do not support him. They have all been on the phone to me over the weekend denying any such incidents. In fact, the only thing we are investigating is the action of a union official who seems to be the one responsible for keeping a person in prison longer than he should have been.
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Leave granted.
Mr STIRLING: Does the minister agree with Superintendent Brown of the Alice Springs Correctional Centre that the department is 10 years behind the times, that prison officers are not much better than MSS security guards, and that future promotions will go to Victorian fast-trackers who will become the department's middle management? Is this the minister's opinion too? If not, what does he intend to do about these statements that are destroying morale at the jail?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, as usual, the member for Nhulunbuy has quoted selectively from a discussion that was held by the superintendent of the Alice Springs Correctional Centre with a number of prison officer staff. This incident has been fully discussed by the commissioner, Dave Moore, who was in Alice Springs last weekend, and the prison superintendent. The commissioner reported back to me yesterday on this matter. There is no doubt in my mind and the mind of the commissioner that some small-minded people in the union managed to take some of the comments that were made by the staff completely out of context.
Page 10
Some of the claims that the member for Nhulunbuy has been making over the last few days have been absolutely outrageous. He has this ability to go into the community and ...
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr POOLE: He has the ability to make mischievous statements. An example is his reference to the use of CS gas ...
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr POOLE: ... which has been thoroughly investigated by the department. In actual fact, at the time of the alleged incident, no officer in the whole of the prison system, whether they be union people, prison wardens, management or superintendents, ever made a request to use gas. The honourable member has been very mischievous in many of the things that he has said. He seems to think ...
Mr Stirling: Answer the question. Do you agree with Brown?
Mr POOLE: I certainly support Superintendent Brown. I certainly support the management and the staff.
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr POOLE: You don't like it, do you, Syd?
The member for Nhulunbuy also made the statement, which was very demoralising to prison officers in general, that they allow Aboriginal prisoners in the minimum security areas to drink. That has been rebutted by the many officers to whom I have spoken over the past few days. In fact, all prisoners are regularly breath-tested. There has been no evidence to suggest that anybody in minimum security has been drinking.
Further, the honourable member, who represents Aboriginal Territorians, would be well aware that Aboriginal prisoners far prefer to sleep on mattresses outside in the open air which they can do at the minimum security cottages. Because of that, he has his mind in the gutter. He issued press releases and said on radio that they are fornicating, that they are bringing women on to the prison property. There is no evidence of that whatsoever. He is completely misleading the general public. He is doing a major disservice to his union mates in Alice Springs. They certainly do not support him. They have all been on the phone to me over the weekend denying any such incidents. In fact, the only thing we are investigating is the action of a union official who seems to be the one responsible for keeping a person in prison longer than he should have been.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016