Swinney’s ‘head in the sand’, claims Sarwar in clash over early prisoner release

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar accused John Swinney of having his “head in the sand” as the pair clashed over plans for the early release of prisoners in Scotland.

The First Minister hit back by accusing Labour of ushering in “austerity by the back door” with the Chancellor’s rise in employer national insurance contributions (NICs).

During First Minister’s Questions on Thursday, Mr Sarwar said the releasing prisoners early is a “desperate attempt to tackle a crisis created by the SNP”.

Holyrood is currently considering emergency legislation which will lower the automatic release point for prisoners with sentences of less than four years.

The Scottish Government says the move is necessary to tackle overcrowding in prisons, and that those convicted of sexual or domestic violence offences will be exempt from early release.

Mr Sarwar said the SNP had presided over a “huge backlog” in the courts system.

He said: “To be frank the First Minister has his head in the sand.”

He also referred to comments from Auditor General Stephen Boyle, who said the Scottish Government is not providing leadership on public service reform.

Mr Swinney said Scotland is not the only jurisdiction to experience prison crowding in the wake of the pandemic, saying the early release measures are required to keep jails safe.

He said the Scottish Government has increased its use of electronically monitored bail and freed up space at the Polmont Young Offenders Institution.

The First Minister said he has been open about the challenges facing the public finances.

Discussing the budget pressures, Mr Swinney said: “While the Labour (UK) Government is offering increases in funding which amount to 1% in our budget once inflation is taken into account, £400 million.

“On the other hand we are facing increased employer national insurance contributions of £600 million.

“What we have is a Labour Government giving with one hand and taking away with the other, that is austerity by the back door.”

The Scottish Government has previously said the rise in employer NICs could cost Scottish public services around £500 million.

The UK Government has said the Chancellor’s Budget outlined last month will lead to an additional £1.5 billion this financial year and an extra £3.4 billion next year for the Scottish Government through the Barnett formula.