Modernizing Our Corrections System
New construction and building upgrades in Eastern Ontario will modernize facilities, improve public safety, and support economic recovery
Our PC government has been clear in our commitment to protecting public safety and fostering healthy communities.
A critical foundation of public safety is our correctional system, and these facilities have grown out of date and insufficient over the past decades. That’s why our government was pleased to announce today an Eastern Region Strategy that will modernize the adult correctional system, better protect our corrections officers, and support our economic recovery.
New construction and building upgrades will modernize facilities, address issues of overcrowding, and create new spaces to support staff training, mental health services and inmate programming. The modernization strategy for Ontario’s Eastern Region will include:
- Building a new Greater Ottawa Correctional Complex in Kemptville to improve staff and inmate safety;
- Redesigning the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre to allow for improved programming for inmates and training space for staff;
- Replacing the Brockville Jail, which is currently the oldest in the province, with a new facility that will increase mental health treatment capacity in the region;
- Creating a dedicated secure treatment unit for women at the St. Lawrence Valley Correctional and Treatment Centre; and
- Expanding the Quinte Detention Centre to increase capacity for women inmates.
This strategic investment will ensure our frontline staff have the modern facilities, work environments and supports needed to do their jobs safely and effectively. It will also help create jobs and stimulate the economy over the long as Ontario moves into the next phase of recovery from COVID-19.
The Eastern Region Strategy builds on our PC government’s plan to invest $500 million over five years to modernize correctional facilities and support frontline corrections officers across the province, including the hiring of more than 500 new corrections staff.