MacAskill has an open prison system to fix

Published on Thursday 25 June 2009 21:30

AN INDEPENDENT inquiry into the absconding of Brian "The Hawk" Martin from Castle Huntly open prison has determined that had official guidelines been followed this violent criminal would never have been sent to the facility in the first place.

These new instructions were introduced last year by the Justice Secretary, Kenny MacAskill, after another prisoner went on the run from Castle Huntly and raped a schoolgirl. The rules ban convicts from being moved to open jails if they have absconded before, as was the case with Brian Martin.

In this instance, the fault appears to lie with the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) bureaucracy rather than the Justice Secretary, though questions still remain to be answered as to why Martin's absence was not made public more quickly. However, Mr MacAskill has to take the SPS in hand and it is his job to ensure the service follows the rules he has laid down. Failure to do so would be a resignation matter.

The inquiry report has recommended additional safeguards to strengthen security at open prisons. They included making prison governors responsible for approving any transfers; reviewing the benefits of the open prison regime; and tagging long-term prisoners when they were out in the community on home or work release.

This is the minimum that should be implemented so there is not a repetition of the Martin episode. Mr MacAskill should see it is done now.