The Australian Greens say the release of an Amnesty International report into Indigenous incarceration should restart a national conversation about Justice Reinvestment as an alternative to "lock 'em up" prison culture.

Australian Greens spokesperson for legal affairs Senator Penny Wright, who chaired a 2013 inquiry into Justice Reinvestment, said some of the momentum for Federal action had been lost after the election of the Abbott Government.

More Aboriginal Australians will end up in jail because of the Abbott Government's cuts to indigenous legal aid, say the Australian Greens.

Spokesperson on legal affairs Senator Penny Wright said the Coalition's decision to cut $9m from legal services showed appalling lack of concern about shameful over-incarceration of Aboriginal people.

"More than one in four prisoners are Aboriginal, despite making up only a fraction of our population. Too many are in jail because of inadequate legal understanding and representation," Senator Wright said.

The number of Aboriginal people in jail will continue to rise if cuts to indigenous legal aid go ahead, says Australian Greens spokesperson for legal affairs, Senator Penny Wright.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott must urgently clarify if he intends to reverse his party's election promise to make multi-million dollar cuts to indigenous legal aid, say the Australian Greens.

The Attorney General's Department last night confirmed frontline services could not be isolated from the $42 million cut to indigenous legal aid funding under questioning from Senator Rachel Siewert and Senator Penny Wright.

Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee 
Australian Government Solicitor 

18 November, 2013

Senator WRIGHT: I have some questions about the availability of certain types of data and, if it is available, where it is to be found. Does the institute collect figures that show the total national number of people received into prison each year? I will give you the background of what I want there. Do the figures show receptions over the course of the year, as opposed to a one-day census?