7. CHESTER BORROWS (National—Whanganui) Link to this
to the Minister of Corrections
What progress has the Government made toward its commitment to double the number of prisoners receiving drug and alcohol treatment?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS (Minister of Corrections) Link to this
I am very pleased to report that this week I opened the third drug treatment centre to be opened by this Government in New Zealand prisons. The opening of units in Auckland, Otago, and now Whanganui means we now have nine treatment units throughout the prison network. It also signifies that we have delivered on our promise to double the number of addiction treatment places from 500 to 1,000 per year. More prisoners than ever before are receiving addiction treatment, and the treatment has been shown to reduce reoffending by up to one-third. This matches, if not exceeds, the very best - performing correctional programmes in the world.
Hon JUDITH COLLINS Link to this
About two-thirds of prisoners enter prisons with drug and alcohol problems, and to reduce reoffending we need to break the cycle of addiction. The three new units are delivering an intensive 3-month programme that targets prisoners serving short sentences of between 4 and 12 months. Providing this intense shorter programme enables more prisoners to be offered treatment and it allows the Department of Corrections to target younger prisoners who are serving their first sentence. This early intervention gives us a better chance to stop offenders from developing a lifelong pattern of addiction and crime.