New Katherine Prison Won’t Solve NT Overcrowding Crisis
The Northern Territory Government’s plan to build a new prison work camp in Katherine is an expensive and misguided response to chronic overcrowding in the Territory’s correctional system that fails to address the root causes of the problem.
Justice Reform Initiative Executive Director Dr Mindy Sotiri said the plan highlights a continued overreliance on costly prison expansions in the NT rather than addressing the underlying drivers of incarceration.
“We absolutely need to respond to overcrowding — but the real solution is to reduce the number of people going into prison in the first place,” Dr Sotiri said.
“Building new prisons is like placing an ambulance at the bottom of a cliff. It does nothing to address the structural and systemic issues that are pushing people into prison in the first place.”
The announcement comes as the NT Government prepares to unveil a record $500 million spend on law and order in the upcoming Budget — with just $4.2 million allocated to programs addressing family and domestic violence.
“This is a clear example of getting the policy and resource settings completely wrong,” Dr Sotiri said. “It’s misleading to celebrate record investment when that spend is being poured into a failing system that does not reduce crime or improve community safety. Not only is increased expenditure on incarceration not based on any evidence in terms of what works, it diverts government spending from family violence programs, mental health, education, family support and other key programs in the community which are proven to reduce crime and make communities safer.”
The NT remains Australia’s most imprisoned jurisdiction, with an incarceration rate three times greater than anywhere else in Australia – and that number continues to rise due to punitive legislative settings. The NT also has the highest recidivism rate, with six out of ten prisoners returning to jail within two years of release. These settings have led to chronic under-staffing and rolling lockdowns across NT corrections facilities.
NT Coordinator Kirsten Wilson questioned the feasibility and long-term impact of the proposed Katherine facility and its suitability to host rehabilitation programs.
“It’s very unclear how this new prison would be staffed or operated, and based on what we know of the NT corrections system, the idea that this facility will be genuinely rehabilitative and reduce reoffending is a fantasy,” she said.
“With such high rates of recidivism in the Territory, we have to ask: why would this be any different?”
The Justice Reform Initiative is calling for urgent investment in evidence-based alternatives to incarceration, including diversion programs, community-based supports, and justice reinvestment strategies that have been shown to reduce offending and improve community safety.
“The NT Government must learn from past mistakes. Real answers to community safety are not found in sending more people to prison or creating more prison beds to fill,” Ms Wilson said. “They are found in greater and targeted investment in community programs and First Nations-led initiatives that work to address offending behaviours and reduce contact with the justice system in the long term.”