Nats want answers to soaring prisoner numbers

The National Party wants to know how the Government is going to deal with burgeoning prisoner numbers.

A Ministry of Justice forecast shows the average monthly prison population is expected to go from 7656 in June 2006 to 9028 in June 2014.

Prison numbers are expected to peak at 7959 this year, compared with the 7758 forecast in 2005.

The forecasts are under different scenarios of being with or without early intervention policies and the 1250 extra police approved by Cabinet last year. The seasonal peak of 7959 in 2007 took in the early interventions and extra police. Without these the forecast 2007 peak was 8210.

National Corrections spokesman Simon Power said the latest prison population numbers - of 8090 as at May 21 - were already 131 above the forecast with three months to go until September.

The Government should explain how it was going to deal with the "exploding" prison population without building another new prison or letting dangerous prisoners into the community, he said.

- NZPA