Page 1291 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 5 April 2011
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offenders with a strong focus on human rights. The government remains committed to this outcome and the report will be a key contribution to achieving that outcome. I commend the reports to the Assembly.
MR HANSON (Molonglo) (10.39): Obviously, having just received this report, it is difficult to go through it in detail, but certainly a cursory glance indicates that there are some pretty damming findings in the Hamburger report. I think that Simon Corbell’s claim that, because it was not a disaster in the first year, it should somehow be commended, that because we did not have too many deaths in custody and we did not have a riot we should be commended—
Mr Stanhope interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr Stanhope.
MR HANSON: What the finding goes on to say is that to date it has not delivered to the standard required. Being mindful of the way that this government has recently spun its reports, and certainly we have seen that from the health minister and no doubt we will see it from Simon Corbell today, I think members of the Assembly and the broader community would be very aware—as Simon Corbell is out peddling this in the media and making his speeches in the Assembly and elsewhere—that this is not a good report. I can see quite clearly that the findings—
Mr Stanhope interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Mr Hanson, one moment, please. Stop the clock, please.
Mr Stanhope interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Mr Stanhope, Mr Corbell was heard in silence and I expect Mr Hanson to be extended the same courtesy.
Members interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Order. I have made my position clear. Mr Hanson has the floor.
MR HANSON: Thank you, Mr Speaker. Going through these findings, fundamentally the report is saying that to date the AMC has not delivered to the standard required. There are numerous other failures in here that are being addressed and I think that many of them are problems that we are already aware of. It is worth reminding the Chief Minister, who has been interjecting, that the report notes that the current capacity of 300 beds leads to challenges in separating and segregating detainees, which places constraints on the delivery of services to detainees and the management of the safety and security of the correctional centre.
I think it is worth reminding the Assembly that it was the Chief Minister who said that he would move from a 374-bed facility, which he had promised, to a 300-bed facility, because of budget constraints, and that this would meet the territory’s needs. It was this government that said that this would meet the territory’s needs for, I think,
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