Scottish prison numbers need to reduce urgently – inspector

A Scottish Prison Service spokesman said: “Our population, which was already very high and extremely complex, has increased rapidly in the past few weeks, in a way which was not anticipated.

“This is putting significant pressure on our staff, our establishments, and those in our care.”

He added: “Many of our establishments are full beyond their design capacity.”

A Scottish government spokeswoman said: “Scotland is facing the same challenges as England, Wales and Northern Ireland and, like them, we are taking a number of actions to address the issues, including making the best use of the current prison estate.

“The justice secretary will update parliament on Thursday on the prison population.”