THE government has locked itself into funding compulsory sex offender program, increased legal aid contributions, prison upgrades and better court security provisions as promised before Thursday’s budget.
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The government will commit $4.7 million over four years to fund 20 extra beds and staff at the minimum security Mary Hutchinson Women's Prison which is currently stretched to capacity.
Electronic security systems at the Ron Barwick Minimum Security Prison will be upgraded with $693,000 in funding.
The government will spend $575,000 on the new Custodial Inspector position within the department, as recommended in the Palmer Report – a probe into the extensive problems at Risdon Prison.
The inspector will look at issues with management, control and security of the state's prisons and youth detention centre, and prisoner welfare.
The government will provide $496,000 more in legal aid this coming financial year.
Security at the state's three Supreme Courts will be improved and staff increased with $450,000 in funding and recurrent staff funding of $120,000 a year.
[The government] is committed to providing better protection for the most vulnerable in our community and this includes a range of measures aimed at reducing sexual offending
- Corrections Minister Vanessa Goodwin
The government will spend $1.2 million a year over four years on compulsory treatment of sex offenders.
Corrections Minister Vanessa Goodwin said a 2015 report by the Sentencing Advisory Council had confirmed that sentences imposed for sex offences were too lenient.
“(The government) is committed to providing better protection for the most vulnerable in our community and this includes a range of measures aimed at reducing sexual offending,” she said.
The Justice Department will spend $1.9 million on the rollout for "a one-stop shop" development approvals system, iPlan, which will provide up-to-date access to applicable planning and building rules.
