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I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-26135 on 13 November 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at .

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-26135 on 13 November 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at .

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:

SPS publishes the average number of Purposeful Activity (PA) Hours per week, per convicted prisoner, as part of our Key Performance Indicators as reported in our Annual Report and Accounts.

In 2018-19 the average number of PA hours undertaken per convicted person in our care, per week, was 20 hours.

SPS does not publish figures in relation to the number of PA hours undertaken on a daily basis. The number of PA hours available for delivery fluctuate over the course of a working week and generally reduces at weekends.

Average PA hours by prison, per week, per convicted person in SPS care for 2018-19 is detailed in table 1, below:

The Scottish Government does not hold this information at present. As stated in the answer to S5W-20884 on 30 January 2019, the Scottish Government are currently working with the Scottish Prison Service to develop a shared approach to publishing the data captured by the operational database (as well as the range of historical data held) and making more data and information accessible to users.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at:

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:

The decision to remove any individual in our care from association is always done in accordance with Rule 95 of the Prisons and Young Offenders Institutions (Scotland) Rules 2011.

An individual may only be removed from association and accommodated in a Separation and Reintegration Unit (SRU) where the Governor is satisfied that it is appropriate for maintaining good order or discipline; protecting the interests of any person; or ensuring the safety of others.

Individuals are only removed from association on a temporary basis and a management plan should always be devised, at the earliest possible opportunity, in order to support reintegration.

As part of the normalisation routine, people held in SRUs are afforded the opportunity to engage in outside exercise, education and the use of other SRU facilities including gym areas, when available.

Additionally, people held in SRUs retain their entitlement to access family visits, phone calls and mail correspondence.

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:

This quote from the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) report was made specifically in relation to HMP Barlinnie, not the wider SPS estate.

On Friday 1 November 2019 HMP Barlinnie was operating at 144% capacity. HMP Barlinnie has been routinely operating significantly above its intended capacity for some time and this has had a notable impact upon the operation of the prison.

Where any prison routinely operates above capacity then this inevitably impacts upon the ability to provide an enhanced regime across. HMP Barlinnie’s building design also inhibits open association and in order to ensure the safety of people in our care, out of cell activity requires `more structured delivery than at other prisons.

The CPT report highlighted that in the other prisons they visited, including HMP Edinburgh and HMP & YOI Grampian, people held on remand were provided the opportunity for out of cell activity which exceeded two hours per day.

In 2018/19 SPS facilitated a total of 6,258,125 Purposeful Activity (PA) Hours. This equates to, on average, 20 hours per week of PA, undertaken by each convicted person outside of their cell.

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:

SPS does not record the number of hours that people in our care spend in their cells.

The report Women's Service and Pathways Across the Forensic Mental Health Estate has been prepared by the Forensic Mental Health Services Managed Care Network working with NHS Boards. It will be published in due course by the Forensic Network.

The Independent Review of Forensic Mental Health Services in Scotland is undertaking a wide-ranging review of the delivery of forensic mental health services and must take account of existing pieces of work, including this report.

Mental health assessment, support and treatment is carried out in prisons by a range of different disciplines, including psychiatrists.

The information requested on psychiatric sessions available to people in prison is not held centrally by the Scottish Government as the responsibility for delivering prisoner healthcare rests with local NHS Boards.

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. His response is as follows:

The quote provided was made specifically in relation to HMP Barlinnie, not the wider SPS estate.

On Friday 1 November 2019 HMP Barlinnie was operating at 144% capacity. HMP Barlinnie has been routinely operating significantly above its intended capacity for some time and this has had a notable impact upon the operation of the prison.

Where any prison routinely operates above capacity then this inevitably impacts upon the ability to provide an enhanced regime. HMP Barlinnie’s building design also inhibits open association and in order to ensure the safety of all those in our care, out of cell activity therefore requires more structured delivery than at other prisons.

The Committee for the Prevention of Torture’s (CPT) report highlighted that in other Scottish prisons visited, people held on remand were provided with opportunity for out of cell activity which exceeded two hours per day.