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New prison for North East
24/08/2007
A new publicly-run prison is to be built in the Peterhead area to replace the existing Victorian facilities there and at Aberdeen, it was announced today.
Further plans for Scotland's prisons also include:
- A financial package of £120m capital a year for the Scottish Prison Service to modernise facilities and finally end the scandal of slopping out.
- Suspension of the current procurement process for the replacement prison at Bishopbriggs and invitation of bids from the private sector to design and build a new prison that will be operated by the public sector.
- Existing plans for the private sector to build and run the new Addiewell prison will remain in place due to the prohibitive costs of reversing the outcomes of previous procurement policies.
- An independent Commission will be set up to consider how imprisonment is currently used in Scotland. Mr MacAskill will announce further details on remit and membership over the coming weeks.
Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said the package of investment and reform in prisons should in the future mean 'fewer members of the public imprisoned in their homes through fear of crime'.
Mr MacAskill said:
"Compared with 20 years ago, the number of crimes committed has fallen by 40,000 but our prison population has increased by almost a third. We are spending more taxpayers' money on bed and board for offenders, and reoffending by those released from prison has not reduced. As a country, that's a conveyer belt that we need to get off.
"Our commitment is to a publicly owned and run prison service, more investment in replacement prisons that are fit for purpose, and a fundamental review of the role of prison in a modern Scotland.
"We are determined to develop a coherent penal policy that locks up dangerous offenders and deals with lower risk offenders in the community.
"But we also need to properly address the legacy of past policy and prison systems that have been good at preventing prisoners from escaping, but which have leaked millions pounds of taxpayers' money through human rights challenges. So we are not committing to building additional prisons - but we are replacing capacity which is no longer fit for purpose.
"After years of indecision we are today announcing positive steps to replace Victorian facilities at Aberdeen and Peterhead with a brand new state of the art prison in the area. This, like the replacement prison at Bishopbriggs, will be a prison run in the public sector, for the public good, and not for private profit.
"My colleagues and I have been working hard over the summer as we have conducted our Spending review to assess where investment is needed most. In a clear sign of our commitment, I have secured the support of the Cabinet to make this announcement today - in advance of the formal conclusion of that Spending Review.
"Nobody underestimates the very real pressure that our prisons are currently under. But rather than filling up prisons with minor offenders and building private prisons that cost the taxpayer hundreds of millions of pounds, we should ensure that prisons are used to detain dangerous criminals and punish serious offences.
"A modern prison environment is needed to work with these high risk offenders. Public safety must be paramount, not private profit. We want to rebuild a Scottish Prison Service as exactly that - a public service not a management agency.
"But let me be quite clear, this is not about investing money just to improve conditions for prisoners. It is not money for Playstations and plasma screens. Ultimately this is about an investment in prisons now which will in the future mean fewer members of the public imprisoned in their homes through fear of crime."
The Scottish government is already examining what more can be done to reform and revitalise community sentences. Mr MacAskill acknowledges there is work to be done in terms of improving the credibility and profile of these disposals to clearly show that they are a positive and effective substitute for prison.
Overarching all of these developments is the need to take a serious, strategic look at why Scotland imprisons so many people and challenge existing assumptions and preconceptions about the use of prison.
Background
Funding of £120m capital per year for the provision of a new fit for purpose prison estate has been agreed by Cabinet. This will not only allow the construction of a new prison but significant investment in the current estate to replace our ageing prisons.
The SPS consulted on the future of prison services in the Northeast following the announcement by the then Justice Minister in September 2002, that HMP Peterhead would remain open "for the foreseeable future". The SPS consulted again on this in late 2005 and published the responses on its website in early 2006. The consultation exercise sought views from a wide range of stakeholders. These views have informed today's decision.
The development of a new prison based in the Peterhead area that replaces the existing establishments at Aberdeen and Peterhead will clearly have significant implications for existing staff. To meet such challenges, the SPS has a number of approaches to employment protection in place. The Service also has an excellent record of working in partnership with its recognised trade unions with regard to matters affecting staff such as this. A recent example of success was with the closure of HMP Low Moss near Glasgow earlier this year, where alternative employment was sourced for all 170 employees affected.
There are a number of things that need to be done prior to building a new prison including the identification of a site, the need to develop a specification and launch a design and build procurement exercise. Thereafter, SPS will seek to build the new prison as quickly as possible.
Ministers have looked very closely at the current contracts of private sector providers of prisons in Scotland. The contracts have arisen as a result of previous procurement policies. The contracts for the operation of HMP Addiewell and HMP Kilmarnock will remain in place due to the complexity and prohibitive costs involved. It is absolutely essential that these prisons deliver services cost effectively and SPS have been instructed to ensure that these contracts are rigorously monitored to ensure that they provide best value for money to the taxpayer.
The current procurement process for the replacement prison at Bishopbriggs has been suspended and bids invited from the private sector to design and build a new prison that will be operated by the public sector.