WOMEN PRISONERS ON THE INCREASE

More women are being locked up for drug-fuelled serious crime in NSW, a
report has revealed.

The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics report showed a marked increase in the
number of women being sent to prison among an increased overall jail
population.

Bureau director Don Weatherburn said women were committing more serious
crimes such as robbery, often to support a drug habit.

"Most robberies are related to the need to raise funds to purchase heroin,"
he said.

The bureau's statistics showed that of the 263 women who were convicted in
the NSW higher courts in 1999, about 50 per cent were imprisoned.

That compared to about 25 per cent imprisonments of the 355 convicted four
years ago.

Women were also spending longer in jail once locked up, thanks to the more
serious nature of their offences.

Dr Weatherburn said there was no question the number of dependent heroin
users had risen substantially during the past five years.

Other figures in the report revealed that in the two years to June 1999,
the number of sentenced prisoners in the state rose by five per cent to
7223 and the remand prisoner population increased by 21 per cent to 1366.

Dr Weatherburn said the overall increase could be partly attributed to
judges responding to public pressure to lock up criminals.

If imprisonment rates continued to rise, jail capacity might need to be
expanded, he said.

But, Corrective Services Minister Bob Debus said the system was coping with
increased prisoner numbers, with 518 new officers recruited since January
1999 and new accommodation being built.

"The prison system is currently in the middle of a major restructure,
developing new, more humane facilities and locating prison beds where they
are needed," Mr Debus said.