Prior to 2017, New Zealand’s prisons were bursting at the seams – and the Government were building a new one virtually every year. Prisons are expensive. So Andrew Little, the newly elected Mini...Read More
Since the Labour led coalition came to power, the prison population has dropped from a peak of 10,820 in March 2018 to 8521 in December 2020. That’s a drop of over 20% – well on the way toward...Read More
When Blackadder and Baldrick were in a pickle, Baldrick used to say: "I have a cunning plan." Now Kelvin Davis, has come up with one - to cut prison numbers without changing any laws...Read More
Mike Williams says the Parole Board is out of control. Board members are arrogant and rude and their decision making is often manipulated by the Corrections Department. Very few prisoners are represen...Read More
The chief science advisor to the Prime Minister has just issued a damning commentary on the way in which the media presents 'information' about crime and punishment in New Zealand...Read More
In February 2018, New Zealand's prison population hit an all-time high of 10,695. In response, a mega prison holding up to 3,000 inmates is planned at Waikeria. We don't need another prison. What we...Read More
Andrew Little says Labour wants to reduce the prison population by 30% in 15 years. No political party in New Zealand has ever stayed in power for 15 years, so that's just wishful thinking...Read More
Before the election in 2017, both Kelvin Davis and Andrew Little made their opposition to building a new prison quite clear. They both said it would be a colossal waste of taxpayers' money...Read More
Any attempt to explain New Zealand’s high prison population must begin with an analysis of why Maori are so over-represented in offending statistics. It starts with our colonial history...Read More
Three quarters of women in prison have diagnosed mental health problems and more than half suffer from PTSD. More than two-thirds have also been victims of family violence...Read More
New Zealand locks up more people per capita than most other western democracies. We now have a higher rate of imprisonment than 160 other countries...Read More
We call on the government to stop the new prison at Waikeria. The proposal to spend a billion dollars on this venture is at odds with its explicit commitment to reduce prison numbers...Read More
The selective and disproportionate media coverage of violent crime, when set alongside actual police statistics, raises questions of skewed reporting at a time when crime rates are falling....Read More
In December 2016, the prison population hit 10,000 six years earlier than predicted. In February 2018, it reached 10,695. Officials say there are only 300 beds left in the system...Read More
They will go where they have always gone - back where they came from. If they came from a supportive family, they will go back there. If they came from a dysfunctional family, they will likely go back...Read More
Beginning in 1950, Finland managed to cut its imprisonment rate by 70% with no apparent effect on the crime rate. Finnish politicians agreed not to use ‘fear of crime’ as a populist theme...Read More
In 2017, New Zealand was ranked as the second safest country in the world – and ranked first among English speaking countries. The crime rate has been dropping since 1995...Read More