Westbury fires up at northern prison meeting with Corrections Minister Elise Archer

Corrections Minister Elise Archer has fronted a fiery public meeting at Westbury.

Corrections Minister Elise Archer addresses the crowd at the community meeting at Westbury. Picture: PATRICK GEE

ANGRY Westbury residents have demanded to know if former mayor and current Police Minister Mark Shelton put the town forward as a site for a new prison in the North.

Corrections Minister Elise Archer fronted a fiery public meeting at Westbury last night, but did not address suggestions Mr Shelton put the town forward as a prison site.

Corrections Minister Elise Archer addresses the crowd at the community meeting at Westbury. Picture: PATRICK GEE

When asked how Westbury became the preferred site for the northern prison, Ms Archer said: “The Westbury site came to us as part of the expressions of interest [process],” she said.

“We ran an expression of interest process … sites were submitted to the Government and we assessed various sites. That’s how we arrived at the preferred site, based on the siting principles.”

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Ms Archer said Meander Valley Council submitted the EOI.

Corrections Minister Elise Archer addresses the crowd at the community meeting at Westbury. Picture: PATRICK GEE

The crowd demanded to know who on council submitted the EOI and suggested it was Mr Shelton, who attended the meeting. Ms Archer did not respond.

Many in the crowd of hundreds at the Westbury Town Hall held placards saying; “council has sold Westbury”.

One resident asked if the prison was “a done deal”.

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Ms Archer said: “No it is not a done deal, as I have said. It is a preferred site we are consulting on. The final decision hasn’t been made. The social and economic impact assessment is being done independently of Government.

“That will be released publicly and it is important that that work is done independent of us. It is not a done deal.”

The assessment is expected to be complete by February.

One man spoke at the meeting in support of bringing the prison to Westbury. He said the prison development would help Westbury grow and “evolve” and without new developments, the town would die.

The comments were met with an uproar of disapproval.

A Westbury resident gives Corrections Minister Elise Archer a serve at the community meeting against the proposed prison. Picture: PATRICK GEE

Labor Lyons MP Jen Butler, who attended the meeting, released a statement saying the Government must listen to Westbury citizens and “dump the Westbury prison”.

Several residents raised concerns about safety and decreased property values.

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