There's a riot going on

Published 8 hours ago...

Victorian prison system 'very ready' for smoking ban, Corrections Commissioner Jan Shuard says

Victoria's prison system is "very ready" for a smoking ban which comes into effect on Wednesday, Corrections Commissioner Jan Shuard says.

The Victorian Government flagged a ban would be put in place about a year ago and since then the Corrections Department has been working with Quit Victoria to tailor programs specifically for the inmate population.

About 84 per cent of people going into the state's 14 prisons smoke, and about 1,300 prisoners or 20 per cent of the prison population, have attended quit programs up until the end of May.

"This has been 18 months in the making. We've had a very long-term project in place to work with both our staff and the prisoners in preparing for [the ban]," Ms Shuard told 774 ABC Melbourne.

Published 2 hours ago...

Massive riot breaks out at maximum security prison over smoking ban

A huge riot has broken out at a prison in Australia over a smoking ban.

Inmates at Ravenhall prison span out of control today and prison staff were evacuated at the maximum security facility.

Television footage from the prison in Ravenhall, a suburb of Melbourne, showed prisoners with their faces covered, carrying sticks as makeshift weapons, while smoke was also seen. As many as 300 inmates were involved, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation said.

And it's not even Wednesday yet.

Send the cleaning up bill to the anti-smoking fanatics who lobbied for this (indoor and outdoor) ban.