Mr WARREN KIRBY (Riverstone) (12:05): My question is addressed to the Minister for Corrections. Will the Minister update the House on the New South Wales Government's decision to bring Parklea Correctional Centre back into public hands?

The SPEAKER: I place the member for Davidson on two calls to order.

Mr ANOULACK CHANTHIVONG (Macquarie Fields—Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading, Minister for Industry and Trade, Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology, Minister for Building, and Minister for Corrections) (12:05): I thank the member for Riverstone for his question and his keen interest in Parklea Correctional Centre, which sits in the heart of his electorate. I am very pleased to inform the House that the Minns Labor Government will bring Parklea Correctional Centre back into public hands in October 2026. It is one of the largest de-privatisation moves in New South Wales history. The decision is a clear demonstration that this Government is delivering on its commitment to publicly owned assets and to providing secure jobs and long-term career opportunities for working people in Western Sydney.

The return of Parklea Correctional Centre to the public sector will provide 400 secure, well-paid jobs for workers in Western Sydney. The 1,576-bed facility is Sydney's second largest remand centre and has been managed by MTC Australia since 2018, with its existing contract expiring in March 2026. In order to allow sufficient time for the transition to occur in October next year, the contract will be extended by six months. Corrective Services, along with Justice Health and my colleague the Minister for Health, will work with MTC, current employees, the Public Service Association and the local community towards that important transition. I assure the House that a transition team will also be established to provide timely updates and additional support to current staff throughout the transition period. I make it very clear that frontline staff who work at Parklea today will be offered a job at Parklea once the transition happens to Corrective Services NSW.

I also point out that unlike private sector management, the Corrective Services operating model is not based on a profit motive; it is driven by the public interest in keeping our community safe. A critical component of community safety is reducing reoffending through rehabilitation and education programs, as well as the safe reintegration of offenders back into the community. A public corrective services system with community safety at its heart, rather than profit, is the best way to deliver on those objectives. The transition to Corrective Services will also provide opportunities for officers to progress their careers via promotions and transfers within the wider Corrective Services network, as well as other opportunities across the New South Wales government. [Extension of time]

I thank the member for seeking an extension of time. I am also very pleased to remind the House that the Parklea Correctional Centre will become the second New South Wales prison to return to public ownership under this Labor Government after Corrective Services also took over Junee, which will come online on 1 April 2025 following a similar 16-month transition. I thank Corrective Services for its hard work on the plan to bring Junee Correctional Centre back into public ownership because we now have a blueprint for success, which we will follow closely to ensure the smooth transition of Parklea back into public ownership.

Since announcing in November 2023 that Junee Correctional Centre would come back into public hands, the Minns Labor Government has ensured that the majority of current Junee staff who want to remain working at the prison will be offered roles once it comes back to Corrective Services. The officers at Junee have shown commendable dedication to their work over the years. I look forward to them joining the New South Wales Corrective Services system, with the shared goals of reducing reoffending and improving rehabilitation. The Government is also looking forward to maintaining valuable relationships with local community partners, including Junee Shire Council.

At the last election Labor told the voters of New South Wales that it opposes privatisation. The Minns Government was then elected with a clear mandate to ensure publicly owned assets remain in public hands. Returning Junee and Parklea to the public sector is a clear response to that mandate. By bringing both of those centres back into public hands, the Government is securing hundreds of jobs for the people of regional New South Wales and Western Sydney, while delivering better value for taxpayers, improving outcomes for workers and inmates, and, most importantly, keeping our community safe.