Taxpayers are forking out a weekly payment to prisoners in return for them sleeping on the floor. Western Australia’s opposition says the overcrowding pay-off is proof the state government has lost a handle on the prison system and claims it is “in disrepair”.
Taxpayers are forking out a weekly payment to prisoners in return for them sleeping on the floor.
Western Australia’s opposition says the overcrowding pay-off is proof the state government has lost a handle on the prison system and claims it is “in disrepair”.
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Convicts are being paid $10.15 per week in exchange for them slumbering on cement.
Chronic overcrowding is fuelling inmate tension, and it is hoped the money will keep riots at bay.
“Taxpayers would be disgusted to know their money was going to prisoners for putting up with conditions that they shouldn’t have to experience,” WA Prison Officers Union secretary Andy Smith told 7NEWS.
The state government says the gratuity payments are normal business
“It’s not a new thing,” WA government minister Sabine Winton said.
“The number of prisoners that receive it varies from day to day and we’ll continue to manage our prison system.”
The union says it is not normal, and prisoners get payments for work like cooking and cleaning clothes — “not because they’re sleeping in inhumane conditions”.
“That’s third world,” Smith said. The union says WA’s prison system is at breaking point, with 17 prison officers quitting every month.
Jam-packed prisons mean criminals are released back on the street early to relieve pressure.
“Victims of crime deserve justice and Western Australians deserve to know that they have a prison system that is working to keep the community safe,” opposition spokesperson for corrective services Adam Hort said.
