The Northern Territory government is under fire after announcing a 1200-bed men's remand centre on Darwin's outskirts will be designed, financed, built and operated by a private partner.
A separate 200-bed women's facility operated by the NT government is also set to be built adjacent to the Darwin Correctional Precinct at Holtze.
The new men's facility would relieve the strain on the existing overcrowded prison system and boost community safety, Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said.
She said that without significant investment in new infrastructure, the territory's facilities would be unable to keep up with demand.
The chief minister took aim at the previous Labor government, saying there had been no plan to address overcrowding and a chronic lack of rehabilitation, work programs and therapeutic support.
"The territory's correctional system has been neglected for 10 years and because of that requires major and urgent investment, she said.
"The fact is that you can't put a price on community safety."
ABS data shows a steep rise in NT incarceration rates, with the total number of prisoners increasing by 558, or 24 per cent, to 2842 in the 12 months to the end of June 2025.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners increased by 24 per cent (482) to 2505 in the same period.
The age-standardised imprisonment rate increased from 3374 to 4167 prisoners per 100,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adult population.
This is well above the national rate of 2500 prisoners per 100,000 Indigenous adults.
The Finochiarro government was elected in August 2024 on the promise of a heavy law-and-order crackdown.
The NT Workers Union blasted the privatisation prison plan, calling it "one of the most reckless corrections policy decisions ever proposed in the Northern Territory".
Secretary Erina Early said privatised prisons only created incentives for more incarceration, with taxpayers carrying the risk, cost and consequences.
A new facility would not address the root causes of crime and was an admission of defeat, she said.
"Many will see this decision not as a solution to the challenges facing NT Corrections, but as evidence that Government has given up on fixing them," Ms Early said in a statement.
"Every dollar paid out as profit is a dollar not invested in correctional officers, rehabilitation programs, mental health services, prisoner education or community safety."
Ms Early said the government was outsourcing corrections to the private sector instead of addressing staffing shortages, excessive workloads and safety concerns.
The proposed facilities will be located adjacent to the existing Darwin Correctional Precinct, 22km southeast of the CBD, with the Berrimah Correctional Centre to be closed.
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