Liberals vow to keep Ashley Youth Detention Centre open

THE Hodgman Liberal Government has pledged to keep open the Ashley Youth Detention Centre at Deloraine if re-elected in March.

THE Hodgman Liberal Government has pledged to keep open the Ashley Youth Detention Centre at Deloraine if re-elected in March.

The move is a rejection of a major report to the Government by youth justice consultants Noetic.

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Human Services Minister Jacquie Petrusma said the Hodgman Government would invest $7.28 million into a major redesign and upgrade of the facility, to make it fit for purpose, and continue to improve the model of care as part of an integrated statewide youth justice model.

“Upgrading [the detention centre] is one of the options canvassed in the Noetic report which I am also releasing today,” she said.

“I want to be clear that while Noetic’s preferred option was the construction of two purpose-built detention facilities in Hobart and in Launceston, we have decided to reject that in favour of the major redesign and upgrade of AYDC option,” she said.

“In making this decision, we have sought to balance the needs of youth offenders with the importance of the AYDC facility and its 60 jobs to the Deloraine community.”

The Ashley Youth Detention Centre.

At the weekend, the Government promised to build a 270-bed prison in northern Tasmania and a 70-bed remand centre in the south as part of a $340 million plan to keep Tasmanians safe.

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Ms Petrusma said that by contrast, Labor had made it clear that if elected they would close Ashley.

“Their Leader Rebecca White has told The Australian newspaper that she would close and ‘repurpose’ the Ashley site,” Ms Petrusma said.

“While the detention of young people is a last resort, it is an unfortunate reality that some young people do need to be detained in a youth justice facility if they commit serious offences and receive a custodial sentence,” she said.

The Liberals plan to keep the Ashley Youth Detention Centre open.

She said a re-elected Hodgman Liberal Government would also undertake further investigation into other options raised in the Noetic report, including:

THE INTRODUCTION of bail support programs.

ACCOMMODATION support such as secure welfare options to reduce reoffending while on bail, allowing low-risk offenders to remain in the community.

EXPANDING sentencingoptions to include a remand order for young people to have residential drug or mental health treatment for a mandated period.

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