HUNDREDS of inmates have been freed in just two months under Scotland’s latest “get out of jail early” scheme to tackle prison overcrowding.
Official figures show 238 convicts were released early in three separate tranches between May and June, having served just 30% of their sentences.
The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) says 52 inmates were freed in May, a further 59 in early June and another 127 later the same month.
It comes after the Scottish Government introduced new regulations changing the release point for certain short-term prisoners serving less than four years.
Eligible inmates are now automatically released after serving 30% of their sentence – down from the previous 40% in an attempt to alleviate the prisons crisis.
Those eligible include drug dealers, thugs, shoplifters and housebreakers, along with boy racers.
The 30% early release rule does not currently apply to domestic abuse or sexual offenders, who can only be freed after serving half their sentence.
Confirmation that hundreds more convicts were freed early sparked fresh fury from opposition parties, who claim the SNP’s approach to justice is putting public safety at risk.
Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Stephen Kerr MSP said: “These shocking figures expose the SNP’s reckless determination to keep throwing open Scotland’s prison gates after forcing through yet another dangerous early release scheme.
“Having created this overcrowding crisis through years of incompetence and their failure to build the prison capacity Scotland needs, ministers are now asking victims and the public to pay the price by releasing offenders after serving just 30% of their sentence.
“That is a betrayal of victims, a mockery of judicial sentencing and a gamble with public safety.”
He added: “Instead of repeatedly doubling down on this reckless policy, the SNP should end these early release schemes and adopt the Scottish Conservatives’ common-sense plan to send inmates to prisons overseas to serve the remainder of their sentences in full, until prison capacity is increased here in Scotland.”
The plans are modelled on Sweden’s arrangement with Estonia, which allows Sweden to rent hundreds of prison spaces in Estonian facilities to handle excess numbers.
Scottish Labour justice spokesperson Pauline McNeill said: “The SNP’s chronic mismanagement of Scotland’s prison estate is dangerous for officers and prisoners, with ministers having ignored repeated warnings.
“The sticking plaster approach they are taking towards dealing with overcrowding demonstrates that they do not have a solution to addressing the fundamental problems long-term.
“This approach has allowed violent criminals out of prison early, putting our communities at risk, while failing to tackle the underlying challenges in our justice system.”
Ms McNeill added: “We need a real plan to deal with this crisis.
“That includes delivering on long-awaited new prisons, tackling the courts backlog, ensuring there are robust alternatives to custody and making our communities safer in the first place.”
Separately, figures show 614 prisoners serving sentences of less than four years were released early from Scotland’s jails in the six months to April 30, under emergency early release measures.
But the measures have done little to ease the pressure, with Scotland’s prison population at around 8400 inmates — nearly 600 over capacity.
The Scottish Government is pushing ahead with radical proposals to reduce prison numbers by jailing fewer offenders and releasing more prisoners early.
Even sex offenders and domestic abusers could be included under the proposed extension of existing measures.
The Scottish Government has launched a consultation on permanent plans to ease prison overcrowding by expanding measures aimed to keep offenders convicted of less serious crimes out of jail.
Justice Secretary Neil Gray says it’s important to act now in order to ensure prisons function safely and effectively.
Association of Scottish Police Superintendents (ASPS) president Rob Hay insists offenders who pose a danger to individuals and communities “belong in jail”.
He said: “A declining prison population cannot be heralded as a success if it means a rise in crime and more victims.
“This initiative needs to be carefully assessed to ensure the Scottish Government aren’t gambling with public safety to alleviate pressure in the prison system.
“Anything that returns criminals back to the communities faster than they would otherwise have been potentially puts the general public at risk.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Scotland’s rising and increasingly complex prison population is a challenge we share with other comparable countries.
“Moving the automatic early release point for certain short-term prisoners to 30% of their custodial sentence is part of a considered approach to managing the prison estate.
“This measure also aims to protect the victims and the wider public by excluding certain offences from eligibility for release.”
