18 Nov 2022
CHENG v PRISON MANAGER, AUCKLAND SOUTH CORRECTIONS FACILITY (SERCO) [2022] NZHC 3015
- Citation
- [2022] NZHC 3015
- Court
- High Court
The Corrections Act 2004, when read as a whole with its purposes and principles, imposes an obligation on the Minister under s 7(1)(b) to approve rates of earnings for prisoners under the Act; the Minister breached that obligation by failing to approve rates under the Act since it commenced in 2005. Separately, Serco acted unlawfully by setting pre‑April 2020 telephone call fees without a valid delegation from the Chief Executive under s 77(6). The canteen pricing challenge is dismissed for lack of adequate pleading and evidence to sustain the alleged statutory breaches.