Australian Government Hands $2.3bn Contract to Controversial US Prison Operator

The Albanese Government’s new $2.3 billion deal with the US private prison operator, Management and Training Corporation (MTC), to run Australia’s onshore immigration detention network marks a troubling departure from its promise that “detention will occur in a government-run immigration detention centre.”

Despite mounting evidence of MTC’s serious failures in the United States, the Australian Government has committed to spending $2.3 billion over the next five years to continue a reliance on private companies for managing immigration detention facilities, including welfare services. This is in addition to the $422 million contract the Albanese Government awarded MTC for the management of immigration detention on Nauru in January 2023.

MTC has been linked to a pattern of serious abuses, including neglect of detainee medical care, excessive use of solitary confinement, and violent incidents at its detention centres.

MTC, the third-largest private prison operator in the United States, manages several controversial immigration detention centres, including those with documented histories of poor conditions, abuse, and inadequate healthcare. Yet, despite this troubling track record, the Albanese Government has chosen to award the company control of Australia’s onshore detention system.

This contract comes at a time when public scrutiny of the Australian detention system is intensifying, with growing calls for more humane, transparent, and accountable practices. By continuing to rely on a private prison operator, the government risks further prolonging the trauma faced by individuals already enduring significant hardship in detention.

There are currently 989 people in immigration detention facilities across Australia, with the average time in detention over 495 days.

Awarding this contract to MTC is a direct contradiction of the government’s rhetoric about humane treatment and systemic reform. It also raises serious ethical questions about profiting from human suffering, particularly when the company’s history of negligence in the US is well-documented.

Jana Favero, Deputy CEO and Head of Systemic Change, ASRC:

“The end of the current contract was an opportunity for the Albanese Government to honour its clear 2023 platform promise that detention would be government-run. Instead, they have chosen to continue funding a system of harm, backed by a private for profit company with a troubling track record. By awarding this contract to MTC, the government has chosen to ignore years of evidence showing the harm caused by profit-driven detention. This is a major step backwards for our detention system, and it’s unacceptable to entrust the welfare of people who have faced significant hardship to a company with a long history of documented abuses.

“The Albanese Government has an opportunity to shift away from damaging detention practices, but instead, it has decided to pour billions into a system that harms those it claims to protect. Contracting a prison operator sends a clear message that detention is punitive. The human cost of this decision cannot be overstated.

“We call on the government to honour its commitment and end the use of private companies in detention, starting with the review of this contract and honouring their other platform promise – establishing a parliamentary inquiry into immigration detention.’”

Catherine Holbeche, Acting-Principal Solicitor, Human Rights Law Program, ASRC: 

“ASRC’s Human Rights Law Program works tirelessly to support people in detention, fighting for their safety and release. Sadly, we’ve represented many clients who have suffered harm in detention from guards and health contractors without any accountability from the authorities or the Government. The Government has a non-delegable duty of care to those in its custody, and that responsibility cannot be outsourced to private operators like MTC.

“Our clients have faced significant hardships in the detention system, and the reality is that private operators like MTC, with their focus on profit over people, are ill-equipped to offer the safety, dignity, and support that people seeking asylum deserve. MTC’s past failures in the US speak volumes about their inability to safely manage detainees and provide the essential care that is needed in these facilities. The government should not rely on a company with such a troubling track record to manage Australia’s immigration detention network.”