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Corrections Minister Anne Tolley has officially opened a new High Dependency Unit at Rimutaka Prison, the first of its kind in New Zealand.

The new 20-bed unit, which will be operated by Corrections officers and health services staff, will cater for prisoners who can no longer look after themselves and who have high health needs.

It will cater mostly for older men, some of whom have dementia, and for younger prisoners with significant health conditions such as physical disabilities, motor neurone disease or multiple sclerosis.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley has announced that an expert advisory panel has been formed to help deliver improved safety for prison staff.

The international panel, chaired by Howard Broad, will review the Corrections Department’s new Staff Safety Action Plan and oversee its implementation in 2013.

The panel will recommend additions and any possible improvements to the Action Plan, as well as consulting with staff, interest groups and unions.

Police and Corrections Minister Anne Tolley is travelling to England and Italy from October 31 to November 8 for discussions on organised crime, the UK sex offenders' register, online child pornography and prisoner rehabilitation.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says targets for prisoners engaged in education and employment have been exceeded by more than 100 per cent.

During the course of the Prisoner Skills and Employment Strategy 2009-2012, the number of prisoners in vocational training, employment and literacy and numeracy education increased to 7,529 from 5,359 – an increase of 2170 compared to the target of 1000.

“These figures are fantastic and we are determined to do even better,” says Mrs Tolley.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley has today turned the sod for the new 960-bed men’s prison at Wiri in South Auckland.

Up to 1000 construction jobs and 300 long-term positions will be created, with the new facility scheduled to open in 2015 as part of a 25 year contract worth approximately $840 million.

The SecureFuture consortium of Fletcher Construction, Serco and Spotless Facility Services has been contracted to design, finance, build, operate and maintain the prison under a public-private partnership (PPP).

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says a contract has been signed allowing the SecureFuture consortium to design, finance, build, operate and maintain the new 960-bed public-private partnership (PPP) prison at Wiri, South Auckland.

The new prison will deliver value for taxpayers and support the Government in reaching the target of a 25 per cent reduction in reoffending by 2017.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley has officially opened the expanded drug and alcohol treatment unit at Hawke’s Bay Prison, as part of the Government’s target of reducing reoffending by 25 per cent by 2017.

A new intensive addiction programme for low security segregated prisoners will see an extra 120 offenders receive treatment each year at the prison.

Across the country, 33,100 additional offenders will receive new and expanded drug and alcohol treatment in prisons and in the community, an increase of almost 500 per cent.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley has today officially opened the new Community Probation Centre in Napier.

Staff at the new centre will be responsible for managing around 680 offenders every year, who are serving community sentences and orders in Napier.

“Community Probation Centres play an important role in protecting the public and reducing reoffending,” says Mrs Tolley.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley has today officially opened the new Community Probation Centre in Napier.

Staff at the new centre will be responsible for managing around 680 offenders every year, who are serving community sentences and orders in Napier.

“Community Probation Centres play an important role in protecting the public and reducing reoffending,” says Mrs Tolley.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says a record number of prisoners are now employed in on-the-job training or trades training programmes which lead to qualifications.

Offenders in Corrections Inmate Employment (CIE), including Release to Work programmes, increased by 175 to 3,144 in June, well over a third of all prisoners and the highest ever number engaged in formal training and employment activities.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley is in Adelaide from 11-13 July to attend a Corrective Services Ministers’ Conference.

The Conference is held annually, to allow Ministers from New Zealand and Australian States and Territories to exchange ideas and information.

Issues to be discussed this year include the management of sexual offenders in the community, emerging technologies, and the prevention of self-harm and suicide in prisons.

“The sharing of experiences with other jurisdictions is extremely worthwhile,” says Mrs Tolley.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley is travelling in Australia from 3 - 7 July for visits to prisons, offender reintegration facilities and prisoner employment programmes.

Mrs Tolley will also have talks with Australian Corrections Ministers and officials during the trip to Queensland and South Australia.

“These visits will be valuable for information-gathering and for sharing ideas,” says Mrs Tolley.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says the first anniversary of the ban on smoking in prisons is a significant milestone, with facilities now much safer and healthier for staff and prisoners.

The ban was introduced on 1 July 2011, following a year-long campaign to help prisoners quit smoking.

“Corrections staff and prisoners have already seen great benefits,” says Mrs Tolley.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says 24-hour Global Positioning System (GPS) monitoring of high-risk offenders is to be introduced for the first time in New Zealand to strengthen public safety.

Real time monitoring, using ankle bracelets, will track the movements of offenders in the community, and Corrections staff will be alerted and can intervene if offenders stray into exclusion zones such as parks, schools and other specific locations or if they break curfew.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says officers in every prison are to have access to pepper spray to improve safety for frontline staff, following a successful twelve-month trial.

The 2011 trial found that pepper spray is an effective tactical option and deterrent, which can reduce the risk of injury to both staff and prisoners in some potentially violent situations.

Budget 2012 supports better public services by contributing to targets that will reduce prisoner reoffending by 25 per cent by 2017 and result in 18,500 fewer victims of crime every year, Police and Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says.

Reprioritising Corrections funding and maintaining funding for Police supports the Government’s focus on preventing and reducing crime, and making communities safer.

Taking responsibility for Reducing Reoffending

Budget 2012 will contribute to a 25 per cent reduction in reoffending by 2017, and 18,500 fewer victims of crime every year from 2017, Corrections Minister Anne Tolley and Associate Corrections Minister Dr Pita Sharples say.

The moves are part of the Prime Minister’s expectations for a more efficient and results-driven public service.

A boost in alcohol and drug treatment, alongside increased education, skills training and employment programmes for prisoners, including remand prisoners, will lead to safer communities and better value for money for taxpayers.

A Bill aimed at improving public safety by strengthening the law around community sentences has passed its first reading in Parliament, says Corrections Minister Anne Tolley.

“The Administration of Community Sentences and Orders Bill will close a number of loopholes in the current legislation,” says Mrs Tolley.

“It will ensure that offenders on community-based sentences and home detention complete their full sentences,” says Mrs Tolley.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says there has been a 45 per cent rise in the number of NZQF credits gained by prisoners from trade training inside the wire.

In the last financial year there were 108,000 credits achieved in total by an average 4,700 prisoners engaged in trades and employment training.

“These figures are extremely encouraging,” says Mrs Tolley.

“An increasing number of prisoners are gaining vital work skills, and we know that offenders who gain employment after release are less likely to reoffend.

Justice Minister Judith Collins and Acting Corrections Minister Chester Borrows today announced Government plans to reduce unnecessary parole hearings for offenders which will reduce stress for victims of crime.

“Cabinet has agreed to introduce screening of offenders to postpone unnecessary parole hearings where an offender has little chance of release,” Ms Collins said.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says the number of prisoners testing positive for drugs has reached a record low.

Latest figures, for the eight months up to the end of February, show that only 4.3 per cent of prisoners returned a positive result after random tests for drugs.

“These figures are fantastic, and show that our significant investment in addiction treatment and prison security is paying off,” says Mrs Tolley.

“We have come a long way since testing first began in 1998, when over a third of prisoners tested positive for drugs.

Corrections Minister Anne Tolley says the Puppies in Prison programme, launched today at Spring Hill Corrections Facility, will reduce reoffending and lead to increased numbers of mobility dogs trained to help people living with disabilities.

“The programme, undertaken in partnership with the Mobility Assistance Dogs Trust, will see a number of low-security prisoners provide full-time training for mobility dogs, which will go on to assist people living with disabilities,” says Mrs Tolley.

A new public-private partnership (PPP) prison at Wiri, South Auckland, will provide improved facilities, better services and a tighter focus on results, Finance Minister Bill English and Corrections Minister Anne Tolley say.

The Government has chosen a consortium of companies, SecureFuture, to design, finance, build, operate and maintain the new 960-bed facility, which is needed to meet growing demand for prisoner accommodation in Auckland.