Lidia Thorpe wins Senate vote for regular reports on deaths in custody, miscarriages in prisons

Non-government senators banded together to force the Commonwealth to provide quarterly reports on deaths, self-harm, miscarriages and stillbirths in prisons.

Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe’s motion to increase reporting on deaths in custody has passed the Senate, despite opposition from the federal government.

The motion also requires territory and state data on incidents in custody of self-harm, miscarriages and stillbirths, and ongoing coronial inquests to be provided every three months.

Ms Thorpe said it was “shameful” Labor voted against the motion.

“We know that horrific things are happening in prisons, but these human rights abuses are kept hidden from public view,” the Victorian Senator said.

“People are dying preventable deaths, women are being denied proper care during pregnancy and childbirth, and self-harm is widespread.

Senator Lidia Thorpe successfully moved a motion to increase reporting on deaths, self-harm, miscarriages and stillbirths in custody. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“We need a strong, decisive federal response and nation leadership on these critical issues. Transparent reporting and oversight is a crucial part of this.

“Yesterday Labor senators were alone in opposing this motion. The entire crossbench and the Coalition are united on this. We want to see the federal government finally start taking responsibility for what is happening in this country’s criminal legal system.

“Labor will make the excuse that these are just ‘state issues’, but we should not accept this weak cop-out.

“The Attorney-General meets regularly with the states and territories, he can and should require them to provide this data.”

There have been 73 deaths in custody so far this year, 15 of them Indigenous.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher spoke on behalf of the government against the motion, arguing there was already transparent data and some of what was being requested would be “impossible” to provide.

CANBERRA, Australia – NewsWire Photos – September 16, 2024: Senator Katy Gallagher during Question Time in the Senate at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“We accept that the rates of incarcerated First Nations people and deaths in custody are unacceptable,” she said.

“In 2023 the government established a national real-time death in custody dashboard available on the Australian Institute of Criminology website.

“The dashboard provides information on all deaths occurring in police and prison custody as well as in youth detention. This important transparency measure is already in place.

“States and territories, not the Commonwealth, hold the information that Senator Thorpe is calling for in this motion.

“In addition, it is not a reasonable request nor is it possible for the Attorney-General to table information about ongoing coronial inquests.”

Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy was among the 16 who voted against the motion.

Forty non-government senators supported the motion, including coalition frontbenchers Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, Jane Hume and Kerrynne Liddle.

Currently no publicly available data exists giving a national snapshot of self-harm or pregnancy-related health issues in prisons.

Originally published as Lidia Thorpe wins Senate vote for regular reports on deaths in custody, miscarriages in prisons