Working prisons to be compulsory under Nats
The Opposition is proposing compulsory education, training or employment for prisoners who are serving sentences of two years or more.
The proposal follows an announcement on Saturday by Justice Minister Andrew Little that people sentenced to less than three years in prison will have their voting rights restored.
Little said the law would be returned to the way it was pre-2010, before the Nationalled government removed voting rights from all sentenced prisoners.
Yesterday, National Party leader Simon Bridges said his was a party of law and order and would release its full discussion document on the law tomorrow.
Part of that would include making the current opt-in system of working prisons compulsory.
They were introduced by National to get prisoners doing something productive and to provide people with the skills and opportunities needed to become contributing members of society.
About 59 per cent of prisoners participated in employment or industry training, which helped in achieving better reintegration into the community when they are released, he said.
Prisoners with disabilities and those in maximum security would not be included.
National’s law and order policy would also make the victims notification register an opt-out, rather than something victims should have to sign up to, he said.
‘‘This policy was designed after I was contacted by a family who was unaware their brother’s murderer had been released from prison. It is not fair or right that they did not know.’’
National was also proposing that victim impact statements should be read in court exactly as the victim wrote them.