The Office of the Inspector of Custodial Services (WA) has joined other members of the Australian National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) in a response to the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture’s (SPT) visit to Australia in 2022.

The response reiterates calls for Australian governments to appoint NPM bodies for their jurisdictions and to legislate their mandate, independence, powers and protections. Secure, adequate and ongoing resourcing is also required to ensure NPMs can fulfil their mandate.

The response also provides the SPT with additional context on issues currently of interest to the Australian NPM. This included access to healthcare and supports for people in prisons and detention centres, noting that their access to Medicare is restricted.

Click here to read the Australian NPM’s joint submission

The SPT’s report can be viewed here and the Australian Government’s response can be viewed here.