What I would say is that the problem is different, because women in prison do not have the supports or connections outside of prison that men do. They are not connected to networks of organized crime. They don't have people willing to bring things in for them, especially not in large quantities. They don't have the resources to move hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of drugs.
We deal with a different situation. We deal with women coming in from remand centres who sometimes have some drugs or tobacco in their body cavities, usually in small amounts. Mostly they are just managing their withdrawal and their anxiety about coming to prison and it's not about their having access to drugs. Is say this because our prisons for women are quite drug-free.
We have other challenges. The women are on a lot of medications for various health and mental health issues. We have diversion challenges that I think are more prevalent than they are in the men's facilities. Those would be for methadone and other medications that they might be pressured to share, or that they might sell because they want resources for other things, such as the canteen.
I think visitors are sometimes bringing in small amounts of drugs or tobacco. It isn't often. We are quite effective in deterring and monitoring that, but it does happen sometimes. The women are definitely making efforts, on occasion, to bring drugs back in after they've been out on an escorted absence, whether for their own use or because they feel pressured sometimes to do that.
I think the flavour of the problem with drugs and alcohol in prison is quite different in women's facilities.