The Queensland Government has taken back control of all its prisons from private operators. 

Administration of the Southern Queensland Correctional Centre (SQCC) and Arthur Gorrie Correctional Centre has been handed over to the state government, making good on recommendations made by the Crime and Corruption Commission three years ago. 

The final handover means every prison in the state is under the management of Queensland Corrective Services (QCS), which was a central recommendation in an inquiry conducted by the Queensland Crime and Corruption Commission into systemic issues and standards of integrity in adult prisons. 

Corrective services minister Mark Ryan welcomed new officers to the QCS.

“It is a challenging but essential job that they do to keep the community safe,” Ryan said.

The transition plan also includes building works to expand prisons to accommodate more beds for inmates and ‘expand the capacity’ of the state’s corrections network.

“This year’s budget includes a $320 million investment towards construction of what will be a game-changing piece of infrastructure for the Lockyer Valley and surrounds,” Mr Ryan said.

“This massive project will support hundreds of construction jobs and will provide close to 500 permanent, full time jobs once the centre is completed at the end of 2023.”

Queensland corrective services commissioner Paul Stewart said the merger the two last facilities into the public system was incredibly complex. 

“The program of work to transition is of critical importance to QCS and consolidating our correctional environments across the state will increase the safety for our officers, prisoners and the community,” Commissioner Stewart said.

“The amount of work undertaken to do this is incredibly significant and covers areas from physical infrastructure, process, technology and training and touched all areas of the correctional system.

“I am incredibly proud of what we have been able to achieve, and I am confident in the future state of corrective services in Queensland as a result of this significant undertaking,” he said.