Perspective

Prisons without tobacco

Transcript

Prisoners and prison officers deserve the same level of care and protection from the harmful effects of smoking as everyone else in the community.

The prevalence of tobacco use in Australian prisons remains extremely high at 80%, in contrast with the continuing decline of smoking in the wider community. Smoking in custodial settings is a major priority because high prisoner smoking rates have significant health and economic implications.

'Prison culture', which makes tobacco smoking accepted as the norm is problematic; and the lack of any political commitment towards addressing tobacco use in prisons is worrying.

In 2005 California banned the possession, sale, and use of all tobacco products for inmates, employees, and visitors to the State's 32 prisons. With over 160,000 people incarcerated California has the largest prisoner population in the US. It was estimated that about 80,000 of those prisoners were smokers and a study reported that tobacco use cost California an average of $3,500 per smoking prisoner every year in health costs. Hence, the bans were expected to reduce the state's inmate health care expenses by about $280 million annually.

Prisons without tobacco are becoming the norm across the US and the experience has generally been very positive. In 2004 smoking was outlawed in 105 federal penitentiaries that accommodate roughly 180,000 inmates. At least ten States have bans where the use and possession of tobacco products is outlawed on prison property.

But what is happening in Australia?

Western Australia has the lowest smoking rates in the country and the Australian Council on Smoking and Health (ACOSH) has urged the introduction of smokefree prisons in WA with the last two Ministers for Corrective Services.

Late last year ACOSH was contacted by prison officers from Greenough Regional Prison who were extremely concerned about the health risks of work in a smoke-filled environment.

The prison officers also sent a petition to their local member and requested him to table it in the State parliament. It had been signed by about half the staff and was a heartfelt plea for a smokefree environment.

They discussed it with the local member, who was very supportive and took action on their behalf with the petition. The Minister subsequently made an initial announcement to the media.

ACOSH has received positive support and positive feedback about Greenough from prisons around the State and other parts of Australia; smoking is topical in prisons everywhere.

ACOSH have also received letters from prisoners in WA prisons who are really concerned about the effects of other people's smoke on their health.

The recent announcement by the Minister of trialing a partial ban on smoking in Greenough Regional Prison is inadequate and it is a desperately slow response to requests from prison staff.

The case for a ban on smoking in prisons is clear and overwhelming. It will protect the health of prisoners and prison staff. Failing to ban smoking in cells overnight, for instance, will make the trial pathetically weak. This was one of the major concerns for prison officers because they say the air is thick with smoke when they open the cells every morning.

The Minister's announcement was well intentioned, but she appears to have been poorly advised.

This 12 month trial of a partial smoking ban in one regional prison is the weakest possible response to calls for a complete ban on smoking in all Western Australian prisons. Partial bans get partial results and cannot be expected to succeed; prisoners will remain exposed to all the cues that encourage smoking.

Prisoners and prison staff deserve to have their health protected just as much as other members of the community. A complete ban on smoking in prisons should be carefully planned and implemented. It should be introduced properly, rather than this half baked approach which is a recipe for failure.

Interestingly, WA's Frankland Centre which is a specialist correctional facility for those with mental illnes), like the rest of the health system has been smokefree since last June and it had a very successful and smooth implementation.

Staff at Greenough prison requested a complete ban; and the case for the ban on smoking is overwhelming on health and occupational safety grounds.

The Minister clearly supports a ban in principle, but she appears to have been convinced by Bureaucrats to opt for the least effective approach.

We encourage the Minister to act firmly in the interests of prisoner and staff health.

Guests

Stephen Hall
Executive Director
Australian Council on Smoking and Health

Further Information

ACOSH

Producer

Sue Clark