The federal government does not have any plans on building any new prisons, director of communications for the office of the minister of public safety Julie Carmichael said.
Spurred by an article in the Jan. 24 edition of the Daily Herald, “Seed planted for new penitentiary,” Carmichael emailed a line from the 2012 budget document to the Daily Herald.
“The Correctional Service of Canada will find efficiencies in its operations and will continue to use existing facilities,” the document reads. “The Government has not built a single new prison since 2006 and has no intention of building any new prisons.”
A request for additional information as to the possibility of future federal budgets laying the groundwork for future prisons yielded the following concise response from Carmichael:
The Correctional Service of Canada will find efficiencies in its operations and will continue to use existing facilities,” the document reads. “The Government has not built a single new prison since 2006 and has no intention of building any new prisons. - Federal government 2012 budget document
“Our Government has been clear -- we have not built a single new prison since 2006 and have no intention of building any new prisons.”
The initial discussion around the possibility of a new prison came up during Mayor Greg Dionne’s State of the City address on Thursday.
In the midst of a speech about the need for jobs and therefore growth in Prince Albert, Dionne said that the city was going to “roll out the welcome wagon for a new penitentiary.”
Prince Albert MP Randy Hoback responded to Dionne’s comments after the meeting, noting that although there are currently no plans, “to show the expression of interest is always a positive.”
