'Under-16s should not be sent to prison'

Published on Tuesday 4 November 2008 22:33

SENDING children to adult jails in Scotland should be abolished, the chief inspector of prisons said today.

Dr Andrew McLellan identified the imprisonment of under-16s as among seven "frustrations", along with concerns about overcrowding and treatment of remand prisoners, in his annual report issued today.

But an end to slopping out and improved safety are among seven "signs of hope".

A total of 15 children were held in adult prisons in 2007-8, down from 26 the previous year. He added that Kenny MacAskill, the justice secretary, had vowed in February to take action.

Bill Aitken MSP, the Tory justice spokesman, said: "I welcome Dr McLellan's stated aims of ending the imprisonment of children under 16 and of trying to "defeat overcrowding".

"Unfortunately for the SNP Government, it attempts to meet the latter ambition by emptying Scotland's jails, regardless of the consequences."

John Scott, chairman of the Howard League for Penal Reform in Scotland, said: "One child in prison is one child too many.

"We must not forget that this practice is in breach of various international obligations."

Tom Fox, the head of communication for the Scottish Prison Service, said children were normally held for a day or two. "We have to take children who are referred by the courts," he said.