An independent watchdog says that Scotland has failed to make progress in upholding human rights in prisons, with inadequate mental healthcare, an overuse of segregation and inadequate investigations into deaths in detention.

The Scottish Human Rights Commission, along with the UK’s National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), has found that 83% of the recommendations made by human rights bodies over the past decade have yet to be implemented in Scotland.

Both bodies are now calling for the Scottish government to act with “urgency” and address gaps in the prison and forensic mental health system.

Shelley Gray, a Member of the Scottish Human Rights Commission, says this report exposes the poor care in prisons and forensic mental health facilities:

“The Commission is concerned about the wide range of human rights issues that continue to exist for people in Scotland’s detention system. This is despite human rights recommendations being made repeatedly over a long period of time.

“Our research exposes inadequate provision of mental healthcare for people in prisons and an overuse of segregation for prisoners and gaps in the system for investigation of deaths in detention.

“As Scotland moves to bring into law additional human rights in a Human Rights Bill, it is important to consider the state of progress on rights long protected in law.”

Little progress

In Scotland, imprisoned people experiencing mental health issues may be assessed as needing treatment in the forensic estate at the beginning or during their prison sentence.

This estate includes one high-secure unit, three medium-security regional units and low secure provisions which include mental health wards, disability wards, intensive psychiatric care units and rehabilitation wards.

These places of detention have been found to have made little progress against 29 international human rights recommendations, including the right to life and prohibition of torture.

Little to no progress has been made in reducing rates of suicides, according to the report.

In fact, it states that there is insufficient data to establish even the number of deaths by suicide in forensic mental health settings over time and that there is no data publicly available on assessing the effectiveness of current prevention efforts.

The Commission’s Shelley Gray adds:

“Absolute rights are the most fundamental of human rights and there is no excuse for allowing these breaches or failing to act when these rights are at risk.

“The level of inaction and delay is no longer acceptable, and we want to see these important human rights concerns addressed by the Scottish government with the urgency they deserve.”

The report says that, despite the Scottish government accepting the recommendations of human rights bodies and recognising its own obligation, progress is taking a ‘glacial pace’.

Sam Gluckstein, Head of the NPM, adds: “The evidence in this report is clear: not enough is being done to protect the fundamental, absolute human rights of people deprived of their liberty.”

Key areas for change

A Scottish government spokesperson told healthandcare.scot that the report highlights areas where significant action but that the government recognises it must do more:

“While the Scottish Human Rights Commission’s report highlights we have taken significant action to upgrade the female prison estate, tackle substance use and improve staffing, we recognise there is more to do.

“As the report states, these are complex and wide-ranging issues and we are taking action, including bringing forward measures to improve the use of restraint on children in detention, implementing the recommendations of the Independent Review of the Response to Deaths in Prison Custody and work to improve female mental health care.”

Yet, the report also states that there are many other ‘arguably less complex issues in which action appears to be completely lacking, never mind progress’.

These include training, recording and reporting on allegations of ill-treatment which form the fundamental building blocks of a system to protect human rights.

It states that while the women’s estate has seen substantial improvement, the efforts to improve activity for women and young people have ‘little concrete action attached to them’.

As such, despite recording ‘significant progress’ in upgrading the female prison estate, the report details that so far, the conditions in prisons and measures to reduce overcrowding have seen little to no progress.

It adds that its review presents a ‘dispiriting picture’, with little evidence any meaningful action on specific urgent human rights measures such as providing high-secure mental health care for women.

Though the government committed two years’ ago to provide this dedicated high-secure provision for women in Scotland, it has so far failed to deliver.

Thus, women in situations of severe mental distress are held in unsuitable prison environments or forced to transfer nearly 300 miles to a facility in England, far from friends and family.

The report also highlights little or no progress has in ensuring all injuries and allegations of ill-treatment are investigated, and the halting of the use of segregation for those with mental health needs.

However, the report finding ‘substantial and continuing commitments and efforts’ to address substance use, including with peer-to-peer programmes.

Despite this, substance use and deaths in the forensic state remain high.

Variable practices across the country and long waits for addiction services are key barriers to progress, according to the report.

The report says that the impact of further delays across human rights ‘cannot be understated’, not just for individuals in prisons and secure mental health units but also their families.

The Commission and NPC say the profound impact that these ongoing human rights violations have on individuals, families and communities across Scotland must be understood, stating.

Head of the NPM, Sam Gluckstein adds:

“Our report does not seek to oversimplify what we know are complicated and entrenched issues which can take time to resolve.

“However, the sheer volume of inaction and delay is no longer acceptable. We urge government to act immediately on the many long-outstanding recommendations outlined in this report.”

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