When an offender is sentenced to a period of imprisonment, s/he will be detained in either a prison, young offenders' institution or secure accommodation.
The average daily prison population during 2008-09 reached 7,835. This represents an increase of 6 per cent increase from the previous year and 31 per cent over the past 10 years since 1999-00.
Find out more: prison statistics
The latest statistics show that in 2007-08:
- 76 per cent of all custodial sentences were for six months or less
- Only 5 per cent for main offence of handling an offensive weapon
- 1 per cent for non-sexual crimes of violence
- less than 1 per cent for crimes of indecency
The current statutory provisions for the release of prisoners are contained in the Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993.
The Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Bill currently going through its Parliamentary stages - Stage 2 in March, Stage 3 in April-May 2010 - will give effect to a significant element of the Scottish Government's Reducing Reoffending agenda.
It contains measures to modify the Custodial Sentences and Weapons (Scotland) Act 2007 that will allow the Scottish Government to move forward its plans to end the present arbitrary system of early release. Changes proposed in the Bill will produce a workable system where the prisoner will be managed based on risk rather than sentence length and will see all prisoners under restriction for the entire sentence.
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