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SNP's prison plans would have let more than 12,000 criminals avoid jail last year - including knife attackers and attempted murderers Courtesy Daily Record Magnus Gardham MORE than 12,000 criminals would have dodged jail last year under Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill's plans to abolish sentences of less than six months. And that's an astonishing 72 per cent of the 16,800 crooks sent to prison or young offender institutes by Scotland's courts in 2009. Those who would still be on Scotland's streets include attempted murderers and people convicted of serious assault, knife crime, burglary and indecent assault. Last night, opponents poured scorn on the SNP proposal, with Labour justice spokesman Richard Baker branding it "absolute folly". He added: "Knife crime is up as well as a huge increase in lewd and indecent behaviour and still Kenny MacAskill presses on with hisu nder-funded and dangerous plans. "The SNP refuse to do anything about knife criminals yet we find that 71 per cent of knife criminals currently do not receive a custodial sentence and of those that do, two thirds would avoid jail entirely under the SNP's plans. "These figures show that the SNP are putting criminals before victims and deeply damaging our justice system." Scots Tory community safety spokesman John Lamont said: "Whatever way the SNP try to spin it, in their soft touch Scotland thousands and thousands of thugs could carry a knife, commit domestic abuse or mug someone in the street and be handed a get out of jail card by Alex Salmond. "That's outrageous." |
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