Indigenous people now account for 20 per cent of Australia's prisoners.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics says in the September quarter, the
imprisonment rate for Indigenous people was 16 times that of the entire
population.

Nationally the rate went up 2 per cent compared to the previous quarter,
but varied dramatically between the states and territories.

In New South Wales, the imprisonment rate for indigenous people went up 13
per cent, it also rose sharply in Victoria and the Northern Territory, but
dropped in Western Australia by 19 per cent.

The bureau says this is partly because the courts there are imposing
shorter sentences and are more likely to punish offenders with community
orders and suspended jail terms.