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In 2015, the United Nations updated the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and named them the Mandela Rules. The Standard Guidelines for Corrections in Australia were based on the previous version of the Rules. This article outlines Australia’s non-compliance with the rules and need to update the Guidelines in five areas: (1) imprisoning people with cognitive disabilities who have not been convicted, (2) solitary confinement, (3) bodily searches, (4) use of restraints, and (5) provision of equivalent medical treatment.

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In 2018, the Corrective Services Administrators’ Council updated the Standard Guidelines for Corrections in Australia (2012), renaming them the Guiding Principles for Corrections in Australia. This was an opportunity to ensure alignment with the 2015 United Nations Mandela Rules. However, the Guiding Principles are less aligned with the Mandela Rules than the 2012 Guidelines were. That is, they represent a step backwards. This article examines this missed opportunity to improve prison practice in three areas of frequent human rights violations of imprisoned people: (1) solitary confinement, (2) bodily searches and (3) use of restraints. It argues that the ACT Standards for Adult Correctional Services provide an excellent model for national guidance that should replace the Guiding Principles.