Power Simon: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Power Simon: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:638;Page:8268] 
10.  
SIMON POWER (National—Rangitikei) 
 to the  
Minister of Corrections 
: Does he have confidence in his department; if so why? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR (Minister of Corrections) 
: 
 Yes but there is always room for improvement. 
Simon Power 
: Why does the Minister continue to stand by his claim that corruption amongst prison staff is not widespread and is not rife when Barry Matthews said yesterday: “We’ve got a big problem … at Rimutaka but we’ve got some indications we could have it wider than Rimutaka” when he has asked managers to do some “sniffing around” and when he cannot “give any absolute guarantees that everywhere else is hunky dory”? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: Any accusations of corruption are a big problem and we treat them very seriously. We have an investigation under way at Rimutaka Prison. We have stood down some prison officers. We will continue to take such action wherever we have indications of such inappropriate behaviour. 
Peter Brown 
: Noting the Minister’s answer to the principal question and in the light of recent events can the Minister advise the House whether the degree of improvement that is required is more than less than or about the same as when he first answered this question some weeks ago? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: I think more improvement is always better. 
Simon Power 
: How can the Minister’s chief executive Barry Matthews reject claims that his department is a shambles when Mr Matthews admitted to the media yesterday that there have been instances where the first a probation officer knew that a prisoner was being released into the officer’s area was when the prisoner turned up at the officer’s door and said: “Hi I’ve just been released from prison.”; and what other word would the Minister use to describe a department that relies on the goodwill of prisoners for it to do its job? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: The chief executive has advised me that no one on parole was in this position. He is aware of one situation more than 2 years ago when one low-risk offender released on conditions was not met by a parole officer. Since then we have tightened up considerably including having better liaison between the probation service and the prisons. 
Jill Pettis 
: What are the Minister and his department doing to investigate claims of corruption in New Zealand prisons? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: We move immediately on any such claims. We have appointed a head office internal investigation team to chase down any allegations of suspected corrupt activities. We have eight new corrections intelligence-gathering units as part of a new crime prevention information capability. The Government is looking at possible amendments to legislation to strengthen the hand of the Department of Corrections in dealing with contraband. This may include greater penalties. We cannot afford to have our hard-working and dedicated staff tainted by the actions of a few. 
Simon Power 
: Why did Barry Matthews deceive his staff when he emailed them in May last year stating that the review of head office was “not about cutting costs or reducing staff numbers” in spite of an internal memo earlier that month stating that one of the aims was to outline where staff numbers could be reduced and when he confirmed yesterday through a press release that some staff will lose their jobs—and will he be first on the block? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: Barry Matthews does not deceive staff. The review of head office is to better align the responsibilities between all the different areas of the Department of Corrections to ensure that there are no gaps and that we minimise any opportunity for mistakes. 
Simon Power 
: Can the Minister confirm that this is the third time in less than 2 months that he and Barry Matthews have disagreed publicly with disagreements including a public disagreement over whether there should be an investigation into corruption by guards at Rotorua District Court and another about whether the Burton fiasco required changes to the Parole Act? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: Although Barry Matthews and I might disagree on occasions we are both very clear on the responsibilities we have in this area. 
Simon Power 
: Does the Minister stand by his statement to the House last week that consultation with Barry Matthews and his department regarding the Prime Minister’s changes to parole were “taking place at this moment” after Mr Matthews had previously stated he was not aware of any changes to the Parole Act; if so why was the department that manages parolees and the services of the Parole Board consulted so late in the piece if it were not for the fact that the Prime Minister has given up on the department and this Minister? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: Decisions around parole are not the sole responsibility of the Department of Corrections. Those decisions have to be made following consultation. It is the department’s responsibility to carry out changes if and when they occur.