“Australia’s growing prison population underlines the urgent need for sensible criminal justice reform, and to ensure resources are focussed on incarcerating violent offenders who pose a real and ongoing threat to community safety,” said Mia Schlicht, Research Fellow at the Institute of Public Affairs.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Corrective Services data for the September quarter 2025, updated today, revealed that the nation’s prisoner population increased by 6 per cent, to 46,936 prisoners, in the last 12 months. Additionally, the nationwide incarceration rate increased from 208 to 216 prisoners per 100,000 adults. Notably, the sharpest increases were recorded in:
- Victoria, rising from 106.6 to 118.4 prisoners per 100,000 adults, an increase of 11 per cent.
- Western Australia, rising from 336.4 to 356 prisoners per 100,000 adults, an increase of 6 per cent.
- Tasmania, rising from 171.1 to 180.7 prisoners per 100,000 adults, an increase of 6 per cent.
“Prisons are critical for isolating violent offenders who are a threat to the community. However, too many low-risk, non-violent offenders are in prison taking up scarce resources which could be better allocated to preventing crime and locking up violent offenders for longer,” Ms Schlicht said.
The data also revealed the national incarceration rate is at the highest it has been in six years since the September quarter in 2019.
“Prisons across the country are approaching maximum capacity whilst violent crime continues to rise. Critical reform is required to ensure costly prison places are being utilised to incapacitate the most dangerous offenders,” Ms Schlicht said.
Previous IPA research has shown it costs taxpayers $159,510 to imprison a single offender for one year. Today, around 37 per cent of Australia’s prison population consists of individuals convicted of non-violent or property-related offences, costing taxpayers approximately $2.77 billion annually.
“With businesses across the country still grappling with worker shortages, non-violent offenders should be out contributing to the workforce and required to make financial restitution to the victims of their crimes,” Ms Schlicht said.
“Evidence clearly shows that the most effective way to prevent crime is to increase frontline policing. Savings generated by diverting low-risk offenders into alternative punishment programs should be reinvested directly into crime deterrence.”
“This approach has seen conservative jurisdictions in the United States, such as Texas and Georgia, save billions of taxpayer dollars and improve community safety outcomes with a reduction in violent, sexual, and serious property crimes,” Ms Schlicht said.
To download the IPA’s previous research click here.
