Howard Sapers, the federal prison watchdog who has raised hell about Canada's rising prison population, overuse of solitary confinement and over-jailing of aboriginal people, is being swept out of office by the Conservative government.

In March, the government reappointed the 11-year veteran for one year, after which it will find a "suitable replacement."

"We thank Mr. Sapers for more than a decade of service as Correctional Investigator, and we wish him all the best in his future endeavours," Jeremy Laurin, spokesman for Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney, said.

No reason has been given for Sapers' ouster. He said he has told the government he'd like to stay and continue his work.

His reports have been highly critical of Canada's correctional system, and many of his recommendations have gone ignored.

Still, he said: "I can tell you that this government has not interfered with my work or with this office in any way during my tenure."

Canada has a lot of work left to do to clean up its prison system, Sapers said.

"The over-representation of aboriginal inmates is an enduring concern, as is the growth in the number of offenders being sent to prison with significant mental-health concerns," he said.

Then there's the issue of self-harm and suicide and its connection with solitary confinement. Suicide is the No. 1 cause of unnatural death in Canadian prisons, and half of them happen in solitary confinement cells.

Sapers said correctional officials continue to reject his repeated recommendations to put caps on solitary confinement and to ban the practice for the severely mentally ill.

"There's no shortage of work to do," Sapers said. "We get 20,000 contacts on our toll-free line every year from federally sentenced offenders and their families. The office is very busy and the mission and the mandate of the office will continue without me. So my plan is to keep doing the job until I'm told to leave."