§ Mr. Reidasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the current cost of imprisoning a man for six weeks, including such related costs as transport to prison.
§ Mr. Harry EwingThe estimated total cost of Scottish prisons in the financial year 1976–77, the latest figure available, divided by the daily average population, gives a figure of approximately £480 as the cost of keeping a man in prison for six weeks. The marginal cost of keeping a single prisoner in the system cannot be exactly estimated, but is of course very much less. The figure of £480 includes the cost of any journeys to and from court under the escort of prison 295W staff, but information is not available about the costs to the police of transfers under police escort.