Chamber and committees

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The Scottish Court Custody and Prisoner Escort Service Contract (SCCPES) provides the requirements of the service provider to ensure safe and secure transfer of prisoners between court appearances and mainland prisons.

1. The escort provider has clear processes and Standard Operating Procedures that have been agreed with SPS including:-

• the management of all transfers, regardless of location, including the use of public transport where the use of their vehicle fleet is not possible and other transport is required, such as Ferries, Boats and use of Aircraft.
• agreement of the protocols with Scottish airports for the facilitation of the movement of prisoners through the terminal buildings to facilitate the flight to and from all Scottish Islands where a flight is necessary, timeous and has been deemed to be required.

1. The current service provider has established a robust working relationship with all Scottish airports to facilitate the movement of individuals through the airport and terminal buildings.

In the scenario where an airport is unable to facilitate the transfer, the service provider will arrange, where possible, a flight to another Scottish airport and manage the ongoing movement via road transport if necessary, taking into consideration the impact of the person being escorted and the time spent in transit.