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Proposals to tackle re-offending
08/09/2008
Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill challenged critics to 'stop carping from the sideline' over proposals to tackle re-offending and help turn the tide of record prison numbers in Scotland.
Mr MacAskill said the recent independent Scottish Prisons Commission's report set out a clear, if challenging, way forward.
He added:
"We lock up more prisoners than almost anywhere else in Western Europe. Re-offending rates show that prison is having little or no deterrent or rehabilitative effect.
"There is something truly perverse about the fact that crime is falling yet we are locking up more and more people. We inherited a prison estate that wasn't fit for the 21st century and are committed to building three new prisons to tackle that.
"But we can't simply build our way out of the problem at the cost of more schools, hospitals and help for families and the elderly. The current overcrowding situation is jeopardising the safety of the staff who work there and hampering their efforts to rehabilitate offenders.
"Any responsible government can't fail to agree with the principles of the Commission report and I would challenge those people playing politics with our prisons to come up with some credible alternatives.
"It's easy to carp from the sidelines but this Scottish Government is not afraid to take on the challenges outlined by the Commission.
"The journey won't be easy but the alternative is neither desirable nor affordable if we want to build safer and stronger communities and tackle re-offending."
The independent Scottish Prisons Commission led by Henry McLeish reported on July 1, 2008.
The Scottish Government will produce its detailed plans for coherent penal policy taking account of the Prisons Commission's report before the end of the year.