Wednesday, 18 June 2025

Prison workplace safety

Joe McCRACKEN (Western Victoria) (12:28): (956) My question is to the Minister for Corrections. Minister, the repeated assault of prison guards has become a serious problem in Victorian prisons. The assault of a guard by a violent prisoner that has resulted in injury is completely and utterly unacceptable. The secretary of the public sector union has said there need to be ‘immediate consequences’ for assaulting an officer, further saying:

Breaches of health and safety outside in the street need to also apply behind prison walls.

Minister, will the government immediately adopt the opposition’s policy, which will ensure that any prisoner who has assaulted a prison guard will be escorted around the prison in handcuffs for three months?

Enver ERDOGAN (Northern Metropolitan – Minister for Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Minister for Corrections, Minister for Youth Justice) (12:29): I thank Mr McCracken for his question and his interest in our corrections system. From the outset, let me say that every worker in our state deserves to be safe, especially our hardworking corrections staff that are on the front line keeping our community safe. As a government we do not just talk about safety, we are also implementing changes. As we speak in this chamber, in the other place they are debating legislation that is designed to ensure that there are tougher consequences for those that assault our staff.

And one of those tough new consequences or additional consequences will be additional prison time, which does act as a significant deterrent in terms of the behaviour, because we know people in prison, many of them, look forward to their release date. And that legislation was drafted in consultation, based on the feedback of our frontline workers and their union, the CPSU, who I do want to thank as well for their engagement in the drafting of that and the preparation and consultation of that legislation.

In relation to the specific policy, I must admit it is unusual to have any policy development from those opposite, and so it is an unusual position you have put me in, having to respond to a thought bubble. But what I will say is it is important to clarify that handcuff use is quite common in the adult corrections system, because the frontline staff already have the tools to be able to implement those. I would say, where appropriate, handcuffs should be placed and they are placed. I will leave those assessments to the experts working on the front line. Arbitrary limits of three months – in many instances some prisoners might need to be on handcuff regimes for much longer if their behaviour does not change and where they pose a real risk to safety of staff. So in terms of the period of time in which handcuffs will be placed, people’s behaviour changes over the time they are with us in the system. You make the case-by-case assessment of the risk posed to staff, and staff accordingly will use cuffs where needed, and that is appropriate.

But as a minister I am always open to making changes and improvements to safety – it is something I take very seriously. Even before my time in this place, in my previous career, I was a personal injury lawyer and I saw firsthand the impact this has on staff, on their family members, on their loved ones, and I am committed to making sure that our system is as safe as possible, understanding that prisons are dynamic and complex and challenging environments. That is why I am very thankful, and I want to place on record my deep thanks to all our staff that do this work to keep our community safe. But there is obviously more that needs to be done on the feedback of staff, and we are looking at changes. I have asked the department to look at, where we can, our policies around restraints, look at our policies around OC spray, look at our policies on barriers. So we are doing that work. We have legislation. If those opposite are serious about making our prison system safer, when the debate comes to this chamber I look forward to you, Mr McCracken, and everyone across the benches supporting our legislation to make our prison system as safe as possible for our frontline staff.

Joe McCRACKEN (Western Victoria) (12:32): Thank you so much for that response, Minister. Will you confirm that under the government’s weak foreshadowed changes, in the circumstance that a prisoner bashes a staffer who is not a guard, that prisoner will not face the foreshadowed higher sanctions? Is that true or not?

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: A bit of quiet. Mr McCracken to repeat the question.

Joe McCRACKEN: I am happy to repeat. Minister, will you confirm that under the government’s weak foreshadowed changes, in the circumstance that a prisoner bashes a staffer who is not a guard, that prisoner will not face the foreshadowed higher sanctions?

Enver ERDOGAN (Northern Metropolitan – Minister for Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Minister for Corrections, Minister for Youth Justice) (12:33): I thank Mr McCracken for his supplementary question. I note that we are anticipating a debate that we will also be having in this chamber very shortly – I do note that – but I think it is an important policy discussion to have, Mr McCracken. I think it is clear that the people on the front line that are keeping us safe, especially in correctional environments, are our corrections staff, and that is why the legislation is specifically designed to protect them, because assaults on other people in our prison system are actually quite rare, but in the instance where there is disruptive or dangerous behaviour it is our corrections staff that intervene to ensure people are kept safe at the premises. I think when this debate comes to this chamber we will have more to say. But what I can confirm today is that they are the protectors and the barrier between prisoners and other professionals in our system. That is why corrections workers overwhelmingly are the target, because they are keeping us safe.

David Davis: On a point of order, President, this was a very, very narrow question about the government’s own policy, asking whether those who are bashed who are not prison guards will have the prisoner skate free. Now, either yes or no is the answer.

The PRESIDENT: I thought the minister was pretty clear in the answer. It was clear who the legislation was going to cover in the first 30 seconds when he answered the question. But, Minister, you have got 5 seconds if you would like.

Enver ERDOGAN: I invite Mr Davis to get with the times. It is prison officers, not prison guards.