Departing ombudsman stresses need for ’urgent reform' in province's correctional system (The Trillium)

Sneh Duggal
March 24, 2026
The Trillium

In one of his final acts as Ontario's ombudsman, Paul Dubé reiterated a call for "urgent reform" in the province's correctional system.

Dubé, who wraps up 10 years in the role on March 31, highlighted "persistent and troubling" issues in the sector as part of a report — "A Decade of Promoting Fairness: Expanding Access, Impact and Value" — released on Tuesday.

"Few areas illustrate the need for urgent reform more clearly than correctional services. Throughout my tenure, conditions within Ontario’s jails, detention centres and youth justice facilities have remained among the most persistent and troubling issues brought to this Office," Dubé wrote.

His office received a record 6,870 complaints about correctional facilities in 2024-2025, a 55 per cent increase over the previous year. Many of these, he noted, were concerns about overcrowding, lockdowns, medical care, segregation and use of force.

"Overcrowding remains chronic, staffing shortages lead to cancelled programs, and prolonged lockdowns confine people to cells for excessive and dangerous periods. Conditions continue to deteriorate, creating growing safety risks, both for staff and for those in custody," Dubé's report stated.

He noted that with about 80 per cent of people in the province's jails awaiting trial and the remainder serving two years or less, a majority will go back into the community in the short-term.

"What happens inside our jails therefore directly shapes what happens outside of them," he wrote. "Deteriorating jail conditions do not promote rehabilitation — they destabilize lives, deepen vulnerability, and increase the risk of future offending. This is not simply an internal correctional issue. It is a public safety issue, a public health issue, and a human rights issue."

Dubé said it's for these reasons that the "crisis" in the system "remains one of the most urgent public policy challenges facing the province today — and one that demands immediate, decisive action."

The ombudsman has previously raised concerns about the province's jails, declaring them in a report last June to be "in a state of growing crisis" and noting that some were "dangerously overcrowded" — operating at more than 150 per cent capacity.

Premier Doug Ford said at the time that the government was "building new jails across the province (and) we're accelerating new jails as quickly as possible, so that’s great.”

Earlier this month, the government announced a request for qualifications for the construction of a new Brockville Correctional Complex and expanded St. Lawrence Valley Correctional and Treatment Centre, part of the province's plan to add 1,436 new correctional beds across Ontario by 2032.

A spokesperson for Solicitor General Michael Kerzner said in response to the ombudsman's report that the government is "taking action to strengthen Ontario’s correctional system."

Saddam Khussain pointed to $3 billion to "modernize infrastructure, hire over 2,500 new correctional staff, and expand capacity across the province," adding that "these investments are addressing longstanding gaps created after years of underinvestment, including facility closures and capacity constraints."

Khussain said the more than 1,400 new beds include "110 new beds now in operation at the Elgin Middlesex Detention Centre, renovations at the Toronto South Detention Centre to add up to 320 additional beds by the end of 2026, the installation of 65 permanent beds across institutions in the North and Eastern regions since summer 2025, and the ongoing construction of new correctional complexes in Thunder Bay and Kenora."

Dubé said another area needing continued attention is that "chronic lack of appropriate supports and services for people with intellectual disabilities," noting that his office often heard from individuals without access to housing, crisis supports, community programs or co-ordinated care.

He said these individuals continue to be excluded from their communities despite decades of efforts to move away from an "institutional model."

"There are far too few community placements able to accommodate the needs of individuals who have been labelled as hard to serve," he wrote. "With nowhere else to turn, those in crisis can find themselves inappropriately housed in a variety of institutional settings, from hospitals to jails. Our work has revealed a fragmented system in which vulnerable people were shuffled between ministries, agencies and service providers — with no clear accountability for outcomes."

Dubé issued a report in November detailing the experiences of seven individuals who "languished" in hospitals, saying the fact that some were restrained for hours was "shocking, it's appalling, and it's very unfortunate."

He said in his report Tuesday that his office has pushed for "more responsive planning, better coordination and greater respect for the dignity and rights of people with intellectual disabilities."

In response to the ombudsman's report, the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services said that “every person deserves to belong and receive comprehensive supports when they need them" and cited $3.7 billion in funding for developmental services — noting this was an increase of nearly $1.4 billion from 2018.

"This funding supports nearly 19,000 adults through supportive living services at over 240 Ministry-funded non-profit developmental services agencies. (Developmental services) system funding also provides over 70,000 individuals with access to passport funding, 46,000 more people compared to 2018," the ministry stated, adding that this funding helps recipients develop skills, participate in community programs, live independently and hire support workers.

The government also highlighted $37 million for two residential projects in Hamilton and Toronto to support adults with disabilities.