Simon Power MP
National Party Justice & Corrections Spokesman

1 June 2007

Contraband problem? What problem?

The Labour Government has taken nearly eight years to do anything about the corruption and contraband problem in prisons, says National’s Justice & Corrections spokesman, Simon Power.

He is responding to the Government’s belated admission that there is a problem, despite months of denials.

“This Government’s attitude to the problems of corruption and contraband in prisons has been a joke.

“They even refused to acknowledge the problem existed until National focused attention on it.

“National raised this issue over many, many months but all we got was the standard reply that the problem didn’t exist.

“Then, finally, they got around to establishing an anti-corruption unit despite claiming ‘only a few bad apples’ were responsible for corruption.

“And they have also been denying for nearly eight years that there is a contraband problem.

“This is a U-turn that has come far too late.

“They should have been doing something about it long before now.

“The public has lost confidence in this Government’s intention or ability to tackle these systemic problems.

“Minister Damien O’Connor and this Government act only after widespread corruption is revealed and when this Government is on the ropes.

“The public is entitled to know why it has taken so long for them to act.”

ENDS

© Scoop Media