Victorian prisoners will no longer receive sentence reductions through Emergency Management Days under a Nationals and Liberals Government.
Under the current system, prisoners can receive Emergency Management Days in circumstances including lockdowns, industrial disputes and other unforeseen events.
Victoria is the only jurisdiction in Australia where Emergency Management Days operate.
The Nationals’ Member for Mildura, Jade Benham, said the policy was about accountability and confidence in the justice system.
“When a court hands down a prison sentence, the community expects that sentence to mean something.
“For people across Mildura and regional Victoria, this is about accountability and confidence in our justice system. If someone is sentenced to prison, they should serve the sentence handed down by the court.”
More than 2,000 years have collectively been cut from Victorian prison sentences through Emergency Management Days in recent years.
In some circumstances, individual prisoners have received more than a year off their sentence, including one prisoner convicted of murdering their intimate partner who received 427 days, almost 14 months, off their sentence.
A Nationals and Liberals Government will abolish Emergency Management Days and require prisoners to serve their full sentences.
Ms Benham said abolishing Emergency Management Days was an important step towards restoring public confidence in a justice system that has been weakened under Labor.
“This is a straightforward change that brings Victoria into line with the rest of the country.
“If you do the crime, you do the time.”
