Media Release

22 March 2007

Action, Not Words Needed in Corrections

The acknowledgement by Corrections Chief Executive Barry Matthews that corruption in prisons may be more widespread than first thought is a welcome admission of something New Zealand First has been telling the Minister for some time, says law and order spokesman Ron Mark.

“It’s good to see the Corrections chief executive today finally acknowledging how serious and widespread corruption is within his department, but action, not words is now needed to address the issue,” said Mr Mark.

“A clear message must be sent to those in Corrections that corruption will not be tolerated. Any prison officers found to be corrupt must be punished to the full extent of the law. The possibility of officers ending up imprisoned with the people they once dealt with would be an excellent deterrent to prevent further corrupt activities.

“As a further step, the Government must ensure that any corruption, collusion or incompetence by management which has ignored or attempted to hide the problem must be dealt with swiftly and effectively.

“Only by exercising a zero tolerance policy towards corruption can Corrections rebuild public trust in the department,” concluded Mr Mark.

ENDS

© Scoop Media