Scottish Government in talks with Westminster over prisoner deportation

The Scottish Government is in talks with UK ministers about deporting criminals to serve sentences in their home countries in a bid to ease prison overcrowding.

Reports earlier this year suggested Sir Keir Starmer’s Government had the potential to speed up the return of prisoners to their home countries.

Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland on Wednesday, Justice Secretary Angela Constance said she was in talks with British counterparts about the plans.

Figures show there were 629 foreign nationals in Scottish prisons as of early October; That’s about 7.6% of the prison population, 325 of whom had been convicted of a crime.

This week the Scottish Government published its proposals to ease prison overcrowding.

The Prisoners (Early Release) (Scotland) Bill will allow the release of up to 390 prisoners by changing the automatic release point for sentences of four years or less from 50% to 40% of their sentence length.

Asked if she had discussed proposals for foreign nationals with UK ministers, Constance confirmed she had done so but added that the UK Government had final authority over the immigration system and the subsequent return of foreign prisoners.

“This is their responsibility wherever the prisoner is in the UK,” he said.

“We are actively engaging with the UK Government to identify what opportunities there are to improve the effectiveness of the proposed measures in Scotland.”

This issue was previously mentioned by Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay in the same program.

“I would ask Angela Constance what she is doing to identify this group, talk to their countries of origin and see if it is possible for these individuals to be returned there to serve their sentences,” he said.

“Where is serious thinking being done about what other options are available?

“Instead of once again arbitrarily opening the prison gates and releasing people who should not be released because they are dangerous.”

The bill will go before MSPs on Wednesday, where MSPs will vote to treat it as emergency legislation and allow it to pass in a single day.

The Scottish Government, which estimates it could cost up to £3.6 million to implement the law, said the release of those currently in prison covered by the bill could begin in February in three tranches over six weeks.

Ms Constance said there were some instruments of justice that the Government did not directly control, such as the sentences imposed on criminals by the judiciary.

But he added: “The prison population has continued to grow and is projected to reach critical levels again, and I will continue to take the steps we need to address this now, as well as over the long term.”