Northern Tasmanian prison plan axed after pushback from Meander Valley community

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The Tasmanian government has cancelled its plans for a 270-bed prison in the state's north, instead opting to improve video call capacity for Risdon Prison inmates. It brings to an end seven years of uncertainty for communities in the Meander Valley, where opposition campaigns prompted the government to change the proposed prison site three times.

Transcript

00:00The announcement came out of the blue for Westbury.

00:05A 270 bed adult prison was to be built on the edge of the historic village

00:10to accommodate northern prisoners closer to their families.

00:14There will always be, I guess, not in my backyard,

00:17but this is a great announcement for Northern Tassie.

00:20But the scale of opposition proved overwhelming.

00:23MPs faced vigorous questioning at public meetings

00:27and so the government moved the proposal three kilometres up the road to Crown Land.

00:32Obviously more work needs to be done in relation to understanding the characteristics of the site,

00:38but it's very promising.

00:39But it wasn't promising.

00:41The site had even more problems,

00:43the presence of endangered species

00:45and the need for extensive blasting to level it.

00:48So the proposal was moved for a third time

00:51to the site of Ashley Youth Detention Centre near Dellerayne.

00:54Once it closed as a youth facility.

00:57But that closure has been delayed.

01:00With the government's finances deteriorating

01:02and community opposition ongoing,

01:04cancelling the prison project seemed almost inevitable.

01:08Opposition parties and community groups have cautiously welcomed the news,

01:12but they're still concerned about what the government has planned for the Ashley site.

01:16We're concerned that the government's decision to axe their plans for a northern prison

01:22doesn't mean that they are going to just hold off on closing Ashley.

01:27The government will look into using Ashley to replace the Launceston reception prison

01:31or as a reintegration facility for women.

01:34A drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility is also being considered.

01:39The government does need to concentrate on proper rehabilitation

01:43for people that are in corrections.

01:46We know that there are huge staffing issues.

01:49The government says northern prisoners in Risdon

01:52could get more access to video link services to contact their families.

01:56There are other ways that we can resource far more effectively,

02:01which also could and will reduce recidivism and indeed support rehabilitation.

02:07Community fears allayed, but systemic problems remain.

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