28728 (2025). Dr Tracey McLellan to the Minister of Corrections

28728 (2025). Dr Tracey McLellan to the Minister of Corrections: How many prisoners, if any, and for how long has each prisoner been held (days) in the Prisoners of Extreme Risk Unit (PERU) at Auckland Prison as of 31 May 2025?

Hon Mark Mitchell: I am advised that Corrections remains committed to managing New Zealand’s most dangerous prisoners safely to ensure they cannot cause further harm to our communities. I am further advised that the Prisoners of Extreme Risk Unit (PERU) was set up in 2019 for this purpose, bringing together specialist staff with the right skills, capability and experience to manage the extreme risk posed by a small group of prisoners, including those with convictions for terrorism, violent extremism and transnational organised crime. I am further advised that prisoners can be accommodated in the PERU if there is an ongoing risk they will threaten, intimidate or behave violently towards others, or influence other prisoners to do the same. This includes prisoners who hold extremist views or who are at risk of radicalisation or violent extremism, as well as prisoners who are connected to sophisticated organised criminal networks and have the capability to seriously compromise the safety and security of our staff and prisons. I refer the member to the attached table which provides the number of nights each prisoner currently held in the Prisoners of Extreme Risk Unit (PERU) at Auckland Prison, has been in PERU, prior to 31 May 2025.