When considering parole applications, the Queensland Parole Board must look beyond the present risk and consider the applicant's likely progress over the potential parole period, including the comparative risks of unsupervised discharge at sentence end versus earlier supervised release on parole. Where a prisoner raises the impossibility of satisfying a precondition the Board regards as important (such as demonstrating self-management in a lower security setting), the Board must address that submission and make findings on whether the precondition can in fact be satisfied. Mere allusion to expert evidence recommending gradual reintegration does not constitute taking into account the comparative risk assessment.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 7 later cases that cite this judgment.