Australian Bureau of Statistics
Celebrating the International Year of Statistics 2013

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IMPRISONMENT RATES

The following imprisonment rates are age standardised. When comparing rates of imprisonment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous prisoners, it is preferable to use age standardised rates (for further information see Explanatory Notes, paragraphs 33-38).

The age standardised imprisonment rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners at 30 June 2011 was 1,868 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners per 100,000 adult Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population. The equivalent rate for non-Indigenous prisoners was 130 non-Indigenous prisoners per 100,000 adult non-Indigenous population. (Table 4.2)

The rate of imprisonment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners was 14 times higher than the rate for non-Indigenous prisoners at 30 June 2011, no change from the rate in 2010. The highest ratio of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander to non-Indigenous imprisonment rates in Australia was in Western Australia (18 times higher for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners). Tasmania had the lowest ratio (four times higher for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners). (Table 4.2)

Ratio of Indigenous to Non-Indigenous age standardised rates of imprisonment, state and territory

Age standardised imprisonment rates(a), Indigenous status