The number of prisoners in Northland has fallen by close to 30 per cent since reaching an all-time high of 625 in 2018.

There were 440 prisoners in the Northland Region Corrections Facility at the
end of March this year, including those on remand and sentenced inmates.

The number of sentenced prisoners, at 215, was the lowest since December 2009.

The reduction in numbers is similar to the nationwide fall, which is one percentage point shy of meeting Labour’s target of a 30 per cent reduction in the prisoner population over 15 years – 10 years ahead of schedule.

Meanwhile, an increase in remand prisoners was deliberate, the Department of Corrections said, as it was working to “allow more people facing charges in Northland courts to be held in custody in the region”.

Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis said the prison population had “safely decreased while crime rates have remained static”.

“Most pleasing is the 1200 person reduction in the number of Māori in prison [nationally] and the numbers of women in prison has halved.

“This reduction in prisoner numbers was a key factor in the safe management of Covid at the height of the pandemic, which would not have been possible if the skyrocketing numbers predicted under the last National government had continued.”

Corrections had no say in who entered prison, Davis added, or how long their sentence was.

“Sentencing laws have not changed – if people do serious crime, they will do the time.”

The reduction has been attributed largely to a programme to improve communication and information sharing within the justice system, and to an increase in funding for rehabilitation programmes.

Sociologist Jarrod Gilbert said prisons were at a crisis point before the decision was made to reduce the prison muster.

“The issues at play were probably best summed up by Bill English when he said prisons were a fiscal and moral failure.”

There had been issues with the vast number of people in prison, with double-bunking leading to an increase in assaults, he said.

“In environments like that, any notion of rehabilitation seems to go out the window,” Gilbert added.

The move to decrease prisoner numbers came at a turning point in public attitudes, he said.

“Attitudes moved away from lock ’em up, get hard on crime rhetoric which dominated both the left and right politics in New Zealand.”

Gilbert said the decrease was not among violent prisoners, but those on lesser charges getting community-based sentences or parole.

Remand prisoners who previously struggled to provide a bail address were also assisted to find suitable accommodation, he added.

Remand prisoners are held in custody while they wait for their trial or sentencing.

A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections said work to stop judicial delays and improve reintegration was ongoing.

The High Impact Innovation Programme includes improved access to information, enabling quicker decisions for courts and the Parole Board.

It also provides increased support for those in the justice system, the spokesperson said, “reducing harm and improving the likelihood of someone complying with any conditions imposed on them”.

“We also have supported accommodation providers in Kaikohe and Whangārei, which provide housing and other support for people with complex needs to help with their safe, successful transition back into the community.”

The support included assistance with finding work and basic living skills, the spokesperson added.

Te Hau Āwhiowhio ō Ōtangarei Trust chief executive Martin Kaipo said any programmes helping former prisoners to reintegrate into society were a good step, but more still needed to be done.

“Anything that builds bridges with whānau is a positive thing,” he said.

Getting former prisoners into meaningful work and ensuring they know where to go when they are feeling pressured is important, he said.

National corrections spokesman Simon O’Connor said his party wanted to ensure prisoners were given all the opportunities they needed for rehabilitation.

“We always want fewer people in prisons but we also want to make sure that the community is safe.”

He said rates of recidivism and repeat offending had not decreased, despite more money being put into rehabilitation programmes.

“[The Department of Corrections’] own report says there’s been no change, there’s been no improvement.”

The proportion of remand prisoners has increased as the number of sentenced prisoners decreased.

While prisoner numbers have decreased, there are now more remand prisoners in the Northland Region Corrections Facility.

With 224 remand prisoners it is the highest it has been since at least the end of 2009.

The Department of Corrections spokesperson said most remand prisoners facing charges in Northland were previously held in Mt Eden Prison in Auckland, and transferred back to Northland temporarily for court appearances.

“Some men would face a significant number of transfers during their time on remand, which could be disruptive and distressing as they were adjusting to being in prison.

“Many men facing charges in Northland courts have family in the area, so being in custody at Northland Region Corrections Facility also means it is easier for family to visit them when visits are possible under Covid-19 restrictions.

“Our current practice is to place men facing charges in Northland courts at Northland Region Corrections Facility in most circumstances.”

The remand population increased again over the past nine months, the spokesperson added, to reduce pressure on Mt Eden Prison as part of Corrections’ response to Covid-19.

Nationwide, there has been a decrease in the number of remand prisoners since early 2018, but numbers increased from 1729 in December 2009 to 2988 in March this year.

Court delays because of Covid-19 restrictions have been widely publicised in recent months, with more than 80,000 events adjourned or rescheduled around the country.

Northland’s executive judge John McDonald told the Advocate when he officially retired last month that judge-alone and jury trials were out to 2024 in Northland, which concerned him greatly.

But he remained confident it could be overcome and said officials in the chief district court’s office in Wellington were aware of it and “doing their absolute best to get on top of it”.

A spokesperson for the Office of the Chief Justice rejected this saying trials in Northland were not delayed for much more than a year.

“As of today, a jury trial can be scheduled in the Whangārei High Court in early September 2023.

“For the district court, a jury trial can be scheduled in the Kaikohe or Whangārei District Courts in 2023, and a judge-alone trial can likely be scheduled in Northland in 2022.

“There are no district court jury trials scheduled in 2024 at this time.”

Chief Justice Helen Winkelmann previously raised concerns over increased time behind bars for remand prisoners in her inaugural report released early this year.