The Independent Review of Bermuda’s Department of Corrections confirms what correctional officers, treatment staff, incarcerated persons and community organisations have been saying for years: our correctional system is a prison that is not working.

Having spent 30 years working in Bermuda’s criminal justice system as a correctional officer, caseworker and senior probation officer specialising in the assessment and treatment of substance use disorders, chronic recidivism, violent and sexual offending, the findings were accurate and have been experienced for more than ten years.

The review panel identified serious deficiencies in staffing, leadership, infrastructure, incarcerated persons’ rights, rehabilitation programmes, communication and accountability. The Department of Corrections is failing in its mandate to provide incarcerated persons with the necessary skills and tools to successfully re-enter the community with a healthy mindset.

The report also identified something correctional professionals and incarcerated persons understand; culture matters. When facilities are understaffed, poorly maintained and lacking meaningful programmes, frustration grows. Officers become burnt out. Treatment staff become discouraged. Incarcerated persons become disengaged. Violence increases. Rehabilitation decreases.

Having spoken directly with correctional officers, incarcerated and released persons, community agencies and treatment providers, a common theme emerges. There is a growing perception that the department operates as a prison system focused on containment rather than a correctional system focused on rehabilitation. There is some truth in that perception.

This perception is further reinforced by the very laws governing the Department of Corrections. Bermuda continues to operate under the Prison Act 1979 and Prison Rules 1980. While the department is called Corrections, the legislative framework remains rooted in a philosophy of punishment and custody.

The review panel found that incarcerated persons do not understand their rights. Complaints are handled through cumbersome processes that lack transparency. Decisions are frequently delivered verbally with little documentation and limited appeal mechanisms. Use of force procedures require reform.

Staff shortages have disrupted induction programmes, education services and rehabilitation initiatives. These systemic faults prevent the achievement of lasting and positive growth.

The report also highlighted deteriorating infrastructure. Officers and incarcerated persons described excessive heat during summer months, extreme cold during the winter, poor ventilation, deteriorating facilities and accommodation areas requiring significant repair and maintenance. Our environment greatly influences our thinking and behaviour, both negatively and positively, depending on how it is structured and maintained.

The increasing number of threats and assaults involving inmates and officers should concern us and motivate us to demand action. Correctional officers have reported feeling unsupported and increasingly vulnerable both inside and outside the institution. Some officers have also reported being the victims of threats by persons outside of correctional facilities — allegedly on the orders of person or persons who are incarcerated — and others have had their property damaged.

One officer reported having been evicted because of damage caused on the property where the correctional officer was renting. Imagine for a moment what that must feel like, an officer who in the carriage of their duties in an under-resourced facility, with insufficient staff and resources, is threatened, suffered damage to personal property and was subsequently evicted from their home for doing their job which is to safeguard the community. Government cannot continue expressing concern about recruitment challenges while failing to address the working conditions driving experienced officers away.

The report also confirms that rehabilitation programmes remain under-resourced. Educational opportunities, vocational training, psychological services and substance abuse treatment must become central components of the correctional process rather than optional additions dependent upon staffing availability.

Mental health presents another urgent challenge. The correctional population is seeing an increasing number of individuals suffering from serious psychiatric/psychological disorders, trauma-related conditions and substance use disorders that the correctional facilities are unable to adequately service and manage risk. Westgate was never designed to function as a mental health institution.

Bermuda urgently requires a secure forensic mental health unit capable of assessing, treating and managing offenders whose psychiatric needs cannot be safely addressed within a traditional correctional environment. This would improve outcomes for inmates, officers and the wider community.

The problems are well known and documented. However, the strategic plan is not. A plan must have specific targets, performance measures and standards, timelines and proper oversight.

That is why I am proposing a Five-Point Corrections Reform Plan.

First, repeal the Prison Act 1979 and replace it with a modern Correctional Act that aligns legislation, policies and operational practices with rehabilitation, reintegration and public safety.

Second, establish independent oversight through a United Kingdom-appointed adjudicator and facilitator stationed within the Department of Corrections for a minimum of five years. This individual should report independently on implementation progress, monitor compliance with international standards and ensure recommendations are properly resourced and executed.

Third, develop a comprehensive strategic plan with measurable objectives, timelines and performance indicators. Officers, treatment staff, inmates, educational providers and community stakeholders should participate in regular review meetings to monitor progress and recommend adjustments.

Fourth, invest in people. Bermuda should partner with the United Kingdom and Canada to recruit, train and develop correctional officers and specialist staff. Comprehensive succession planning, overseas training opportunities and youth cadet programmes should create a sustainable pipeline of future officers and leaders.

Fifth, invest in rehabilitation infrastructure. This includes a forensic mental health unit, expanded substance abuse treatment, additional psychologists, vocational programmes, educational services, fit-for-purpose treatment rooms, modern security technology, including drone detection systems and cellphone jamming capabilities, and structured maintenance programmes that preserve safe and humane living conditions.

Finally, independent oversight must not end after implementation.

There must be annual scheduled inspections and random unannounced inspections conducted by independent correctional experts from the United Kingdom or other recognised jurisdictions. It would be preferable that the UK provides oversight to ensure fidelity and consistency with measurements of accountability. Furthermore, Bermuda is an overseas territory and it ought to be able to rely upon the UK Home office for support as relates to our government departments that are responsible for ensuring community safety.

To ensure that best-practice standards are maintained, inspections must occur on a continuous basis and data collected and analysed to ensure that the mandate of corrections is achieved — the rehabilitation of offenders and safeguarding of the community. Regular inspections will also ensure that improvements in outcomes are part of an ongoing process of programme development.

The reality is simple. The Department of Corrections cannot rehabilitate offenders if it lacks the resources, leadership, staffing and legislative framework necessary to fulfil that mission. Nor can we expect officers to deliver excellence while working within a system that has suffered years of underinvestment and inconsistent oversight. Success will require political courage, sustained investment and independent accountability.

The 2025 Review Panel comprised of corrections experts made specific recommendations for critical and necessary improvements that will promote the rehabilitation of incarcerated persons and community safety.

The Government has a responsibility to take meaningful action now, based on the recommendations of corrections experts. For the sake of our officers, our communities and the future of public safety in Bermuda, it must. If the Government fails to act now to address the critical risks in the correctional facilities, after a comprehensive report with specific recommendations and suggested timelines, it will by its inaction be complicit and liable for the consequences — both legally and morally.

• Robert King is the Shadow Minister of Justice and One Bermuda Alliance MP for Smith’s North (Constituency 10)