High cost of remand revealed

Imprisoning people before their trials could cost taxpayers more than £50m a year, according to a new analysis by Scottish Labour, which comes amid reports that jails are at the most crowded they have been in four years.

 

The party looked at the costs after reports revealed there were 1,565 people on remand at the beginning of last month.

 

The Scottish Prison Service estimates it costs £35,293 a year to keep a prisoner behind bars. That means that, were the number of people in prison on remand to remain at that level, it would cost taxpayers £55.23m a year.

 

While the number of prisoners on remand fluctuates, it has grown significantly in recent years and is largely responsible for swelling the prison population to its highest level since 2014.

 

A recent Justice Committee report has found that remand is used too frequently, as many who are held on remand are not given a custodial sentence even when found guilty.

 

Information provided by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service showed that, for 2014-17, nearly 30 per cent of accused remanded in solemn proceedings in sheriff courts did not receive a custodial sentence and over half of accused remanded in summary proceedings over the same period were not given a sentence of detention.

 

Scottish Labour’s Justice spokesperson Daniel Johnson MSP will highlight the analysis as part of his speech on this afternoon’s Justice Committee debate on the use of remand.

 

He said that, while there were many legitimate reasons for remanding people before trial, something had clearly gone wrong given so much taxpayers’ money is being spent on remand.

 

He said: “Remand has a valuable role to play in keeping people safe and it is important that it continues to be used where appropriate.

 

“But something is clearly going seriously wrong when tens of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money is being spent on keeping people who haven’t been found guilty or sentenced behind bars.

 

“With the use of remand on the rise – causing Scotland’s prison population to reach its highest level in four years – it is clear this bill could balloon even further.

 

“Remand can be necessary, but it is not always necessary - and these figures clearly suggest there must be better alternatives in many cases.

 

“For some, remand is being used to ensure that people get to court on time. Imprisoning people on that basis is totally disproportionate and indeed wasteful.

 

“The SNP government should work with police, prosecutors and the prison service to better understand why the use of remand is increasing and where it can be reduced.”