Harper calls on a Harris man: Knowledge Driven Revolution

Related - Private prison operators waiting to cash in on Harper policies

A former Tory politician who led the Ontario government's move toward privatizing jails is expected to be named today to a panel that will conduct a sweeping federal review of the prison system.

The appointment of Rob Sampson, former solicitor general and minister responsible for privatization in the government of Mike Harris, could serve as fodder for speculation the Harper Conservatives are warm to the idea of privatizing federal prisons.

"Putting that kind of person on the panel is a clear signal that they [the Conservatives] don't believe that [prisons) are a public responsibility and that they can be farmed out to the private system," said Neil Boyd, a criminologist at Simon Fraser University and a fierce critic of the government's law-and-order agenda.

The Conservative government set aside $3.5-million in last month's federal budget for a blue-ribbon panel to examine the workings of the country's 54 federal penitentiaries, which house inmates sentenced to terms of two years or more.

Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day will outline the review at a news conference, reflecting a Conservative election promise to "review the operations of Correctional Service Canada with a view to enhancing public safety."

Melisa Leclerc, Mr. Day's communications director, said earlier this year drug use in prisons is a major concern the government intends to address.

Mr. Day also wants to give crime victims a stronger voice and improve conditions for corrections officers.

The government, which ran on a platform of putting more criminals in jail and keeping them there longer for committing gun and drug crimes, has also set aside as much as $245- million over five years to accommodate an unspecified number of new inmates.

But internal government estimates have put the extra costs in the billions.

Mr. Boyd said the only way the government could achieve its goal without massive spending would be to hand the operations over to private companies.

He added an entire "prison industry" sprung up in the United States in the 1990s, when about 250 prisons were built to cope with an influx of people convicted of drug crimes as a result of the country's war on drugs.

Mr. Sampson, who would not confirm his role in the prison review, was Ontario privatization minister in the early years of the Harris "Common Sense Revolution" and held the post of correctional services minister from 1999-2002, when the province became the first in Canada to privatize a jail by paying Utahbased Management and Training Corp. $170-million over five years to run the 1,200-bed Central North Correctional Centre in Penetanguishene, on the shores of Georgian Bay.

Liberal Premier Dalton Mc- Guinty did not renew the contract for the jail when it expired last year.

It costs the federal government about $82,500 a year, on average, to house a federal offender, depending on the type of facility. There are 12,500 federal prisoners.

The number of new prison space s needed would depend on the government's success in getting its law-and-order bills through the minority Parliament. The Conservatives have already introduced a bill that would increase automatic jail terms for gun-related crimes, and it is expected to pass a vote in the Commons this spring.

Another bill, expected within the next couple of months, would cause a significantly bigger explosion in the prison system by requiring minimum jail terms for people convicted of drug-related crimes.

The review is also expected to look at providing better training and protective equipment for corrections officers and help them deal with "a changing offender profile," according to the budget.

Corrections officers are hoping for better weapons to protect themselves, Sylvain Martel, head of the union representing 6,000 prison guards, has said.

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HOME Genetics, Behaviourists and Free Will Language in the North American Union of Soviet Socialist Republics Standardizing Quebec: The Election from Afar Old Idea; New Sales Pitch - The North American Union ID The North American Union ID: The Data The North American Union ID: The Database The Ethics of Selective Death Liberty Can Not Survive George Bush Sr. The New World Order Parrot Party Police, Party Courts and Concentration Camps P3s, Nazis and Polite Canadian Fascism The Ghost in the Machine - The Forced Chemical Evolution of Man Rouge States and the 9/11 Truth Terrorists Canadians Should Pay NOT to be Poisoned: NDP	Harper calls on a Harris man Janice Tibbetts - CanWest News Service April 20, 2007 Related - Private prison operators waiting to cash in on Harper policies A former Tory politician who led the Ontario government's move toward privatizing jails is expected to be named today to a panel that will conduct a sweeping federal review of the prison system. The appointment of Rob Sampson, former solicitor general and minister responsible for privatization in the government of Mike Harris, could serve as fodder for speculation the Harper Conservatives are warm to the idea of privatizing federal prisons. "Putting that kind of person on the panel is a clear signal that they [the Conservatives] don't believe that [prisons) are a public responsibility and that they can be farmed out to the private system," said Neil Boyd, a criminologist at Simon Fraser University and a fierce critic of the government's law-and-order agenda. The Conservative government set aside $3.5-million in last month's federal budget for a blue-ribbon panel to examine the workings of the country's 54 federal penitentiaries, which house inmates sentenced to terms of two years or more. Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day will outline the review at a news conference, reflecting a Conservative election promise to "review the operations of Correctional Service Canada with a view to enhancing public safety." Melisa Leclerc, Mr. Day's communications director, said earlier this year drug use in prisons is a major concern the government intends to address. Mr. Day also wants to give crime victims a stronger voice and improve conditions for corrections officers. The government, which ran on a platform of putting more criminals in jail and keeping them there longer for committing gun and drug crimes, has also set aside as much as $245- million over five years to accommodate an unspecified number of new inmates. But internal government estimates have put the extra costs in the billions. Mr. Boyd said the only way the government could achieve its goal without massive spending would be to hand the operations over to private companies. He added an entire "prison industry" sprung up in the United States in the 1990s, when about 250 prisons were built to cope with an influx of people convicted of drug crimes as a result of the country's war on drugs. Mr. Sampson, who would not confirm his role in the prison review, was Ontario privatization minister in the early years of the Harris "Common Sense Revolution" and held the post of correctional services minister from 1999-2002, when the province became the first in Canada to privatize a jail by paying Utahbased Management and Training Corp. $170-million over five years to run the 1,200-bed Central North Correctional Centre in Penetanguishene, on the shores of Georgian Bay. Liberal Premier Dalton Mc- Guinty did not renew the contract for the jail when it expired last year. It costs the federal government about $82,500 a year, on average, to house a federal offender, depending on the type of facility. There are 12,500 federal prisoners. The number of new prison space s needed would depend on the government's success in getting its law-and-order bills through the minority Parliament. The Conservatives have already introduced a bill that would increase automatic jail terms for gun-related crimes, and it is expected to pass a vote in the Commons this spring. Another bill, expected within the next couple of months, would cause a significantly bigger explosion in the prison system by requiring minimum jail terms for people convicted of drug-related crimes. The review is also expected to look at providing better training and protective equipment for corrections officers and help them deal with "a changing offender profile," according to the budget. Corrections officers are hoping for better weapons to protect themselves, Sylvain Martel, head of the union representing 6,000 prison guards, has said. Read the full article here Broken Link? 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