Funding required to tackle ‘deep-seated problems’ in prisons, ministers told

A trade union representing Scotland’s prison officers is demanding investment to address “deep-seated problems” in the prison service.

The Prison Officers Association (POA) said prison officers “cannot go on” as they have in 2025, with overcrowding, understaffing, increasing levels of drug misuse by inmates and rising prison violence leaving them struggling to cope.

Phil Fairlie, assistant secretary of the POA, said: “The new year offers the opportunity for a fresh start in Scotland’s prisons. We simply cannot go on as we did in 2025.

“Prison officers are on the frontline of a system that is struggling to cope with rising prisoner numbers, soaring substance misuse and increasing prison violence.

“POA members are skilled professionals who want to do the rehabilitative work they are trained to do, but the crisis in our jails is preventing them from doing so.

“The POA is calling for the Scottish Budget to provide the investment required to address these deep-seated problems in the prison system.”

Statistics released by the Scottish Government at the beginning of November showed the average daily prison population in 2024-25 was 8,213, up from 7,856 the previous year and above the previous record of 8,198 in 2019-20.

The figure was the highest since records began in 1970, when the prison population stood at 5,003.

To combat overcrowding, the Government has initiated several early release schemes, with the last set to take place in April 2026.

Speaking to Holyrood’s Criminal Justice Committee in November, chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service Teresa Medhurst said an additional £40 million will be needed from the Scottish Budget for the service to run adequately.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We appreciate the hard work and commitment of everyone working in the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to ensure our prisons operate safely and effectively, and we understand the pressures the increasing population has had.

“In recognition of this, the SPS was awarded an 8% pay increase over the next two years. This year we also increased the SPS budget by 10% to £481.5 million and provided £355 million of capital funding this year to enable SPS to progress the estate priorities of HMP Highland and HMP Glasgow.

“The 2026-27 Scottish Budget will be announced by the Finance Secretary on January 13.”