A leading Noongar human rights expert has urged the WA government to act now to address the overcrowding and poor conditions in the state's prisons.

Kurin Minang human rights expert and law academic Dr Hannah McGlade told National Indigenous Times the report by OICS reinforces that "the WA government approach to incarceration is failing and putting lives at risk. In the last month we've seen two Aboriginal men, younger men, die in custody".

"We urgently need alternatives to prisons, including bail hostels. The remand population is much too high. Bail conditions are reportedly onerous and placing increased pressure on prisons," she said.

The Inspector's report noted that as of 30 June this year, there were 7,792 people in Western Australian prisons - a 15 per cent increase from the same time last year. The increase was mostly driven by "a sharp rise" in remand prisoners.

The report also revealed that after the OICS inspection of Hakea Prison in May, Mr Ryan "believed that the safety, care, and welfare of prisoners was at serious risk, and in some instances were subject to inhuman or degrading treatment", leading to the issuing of a show cause notice to the Department of Justice under Section 33A of the Inspector of Custodial Services Act - a rarely used power only exercised when the Inspector has an extreme level of concern about the conditions of people in custody.

"As the OICS investigation into Hakea showed, we are breaching international standards including treating people in a cruel and inhumane manner. This is completely unacceptable," Dr McGlade said.

"The WA government can't continue to avoid these issues as if the lives of incarcerated people don't matter."

Western Australia's rate of over-incarceration of Indigenous people is roughly four times the national average. The over-representation of First Nations people is particularly stark in WA's notorious youth detention system.

Dr McGlade said "Aboriginal people have been subjected to cruel inhumane incarceration since colonisation and it's time this stopped".

"The relevant Ministers must show leadership and responsibility to turn this situation around," she said.

"There is no reconciliation when the rights of Aboriginal people who are shockingly over-represented in WA prisons, are violated in this way and leading even to peoples early and preventable deaths in custody."

A WA Department of Justice spokesperson told National Indigenous Times that the Department "remains committed to improving conditions for prisoners and staff" at Hakea.

"Recruitment efforts have been bolstered to increase staffing levels with 300 new Prison Officers for WA in 2024. This includes targeted regional recruitment and training programs for Albany, Greenough and Eastern Goldfields Regional Prisons," they said.

"A broader workforce strategy is also addressing staff attraction, retention and attrition rates with the Commissioner looking at ways to support staff and enhance officer wellbeing."

Last month, questions in parliament from Greens MP Dr Brad Pettitt revealed severe overcrowding in WA's prisons, with 62 prisoners at Hakea—most on remand awaiting trial—and 17 at Casuarina forced to sleep on mattresses on the floor.

It was also revealed that 59 single-person cells at Hakea, and 18 such cells at Casuarina, were accommodating three prisoners each as of 23 October.

The Justice Department spokesperson said "options to provide more bedspace are being adopted at Hakea".

"At Acacia Prison, 111 beds will come online in December and a further 108 beds by February 2024 as infrastructure works following the 2022 riot are completed. Staff at Hakea are working hard to ensure prisoner out of cell time is optimised," they said.