Page 4233 - Week 11 - Thursday, 25 October 2018
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work that is being undertaken within ACT Corrective Services as a result of increasing detainee numbers, will inform how best to progress this matter. As highlighted in the Moss review and also demonstrated by the serious assault that was inflicted upon Mr Freeman, the safety and security of all persons within the AMC is paramount to its operating success.
In response to the Moss review recommendations, I was pleased to announce on 7 February this year additional funding of $8.8 million over the next 3½ years, allocated to improve safety and security at the AMC. This significant new investment also further supports the intent of recommendation 6. It has enabled ACT Corrective Services to employ additional senior staff at the AMC to better manage security, accommodation and detainee services, allowing dedicated and consistent management of these important functional areas within the centre.
As a result of this new funding, an Indigenous services coordinator position and a women’s and children’s coordinator position have also been created to enhance support and advocacy for these groups. In addition, the women’s and children’s coordinator will work closely with families of all detainees to mitigate the negative impacts on children of incarcerated parents. ACT Corrective Services recognises the significant impact of parental incarceration on children and has progressed a range of initiatives to alleviate this impact, including an enhanced visits program for parents and children, and Tjillari Justice Aboriginal Corporation has piloted the strong culture, strong families, strong children program in the AMC.
The additional funding also provides for the creation of a centralised intelligence unit which will ensure a greater ability to proactively manage risks within the AMC and across ACT Corrective Services. ACT Corrective Services reports that the new security team has already conducted a number of search operations, seizing a significant number of phones and illicit substances and severing valuable trafficking routes to combat the impact of contraband within the facility.
The additional funding also provides ACT Corrective Services with the capability to work more closely with staff, detainees and the Australian Federal Police to address emerging issues, including contraband, organised crime and countering violent extremism. In addition, ACT Policing has taken actions, in collaboration with ACT Corrective Services, to afford a higher priority to the investigation of any assaults at the AMC. These measures, along with enhanced CCTV coverage, will help to improve the overall safety and security of all persons at the centre and have already led to a number of prosecutions being made for assaults at the AMC.
Another key element of the Moss review is improved health care at the AMC and the importance of culturally safe health services to support the significant over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander detainees. The review concluded that there is a need to better integrate Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Services to provide a holistic approach to health care at the AMC in a culturally safe way.
In response to this, on 7 February this year I announced that the ACT government has allocated $8.3 million over 2½ years to integrate the Winnunga model of care into the
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