PLANS to end the automatic early release of prisoners would open the door to an avalanche of legal challenges from convicts, experts have warned.

They fear lengthy waiting lists for rehabilitation courses will lead to a flurry of cases under human rights legislation from inmates who will argue they have not had an opportunity to address their behaviour before decisions are taken over whether they can be freed.

New figures have revealed that more than 850 prisoners are currently waiting for places on programmes designed to help them tackle behaviour that led to them being put behind bars, such as drug or alcohol abuse and anger management.

Fewer than 300 currently have places on the courses, with critics blaming a lack of resources and capacity for the backlog.

Under the Scottish Government proposals see prisoners will no longer be automatically released two-thirds of the way into their sentence and their fate instead will be decided by the parole board.

But critics have said that the delays could lead to inmates suing under human rights laws, claiming that they have not been given the chance to prove they can re-enter the community safely as they have not been able to take classes.

Cyrus Tata, Professor of Law and Criminal Justice at the University of Strathclyde, said that the Prisoners (Control of Release) (Scotland) Bill would inevitably lead to a rush for places on the rehabilitation programmes if it is passed, adding pressure to a system that already has hundreds of prisoners on waiting lists.

He said: "Prisoners may well bring legal challenges saying they have not been given a fair opportunity to demonstrate that they are not a risk to the public. We should expect more human rights challenges on the grounds of arbitrary detention."

The statistics released under Freedom of Information legislation by the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) reveal that there are more prisoners on waiting lists than are currently enrolled in courses in jails across the country.

The SPS said that waiting lists were not due to a lack of availability, but that offenders were 'prioritised' depending on where they were in their sentence. However, a series of experts have claimed that capacity is an issue.

Monica Barry, Principal Research Fellow at the University of Strathclyde's School of Law, said that her work on the topic suggested a lack of availability of in-prison programmes was an issue that needed to be addressed "urgently".

Pete White, National Co-ordinator with Positive Prison? Positive Futures organisation, told Holyrood's Justice Committee in January that prisoners' access to education and courses was "minimal compared with what is required". He said that in Edinburgh, where there are more than 800 prisoners, only 43 can attend education at any one time.

Meanwhile, The Howard League for Penal Reform in Scotland has warned that a lack of access to programmes could constitute a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The SPS statistics show that 135 prisoners nationwide are on waiting lists for a controlling anger and regulating emotions programme, with just 46 currently on the course, which takes a total of 48 hours over several weeks to complete.

More than 300 are waiting to begin a substance-related offending programme, which takes between 70 and 140 hours, while 75 currently have places. The courses are typically delivered over nine or 12 weeks.

One leading civil rights lawyer said that the courses were the main factor in deciding whether a prisoner was fit for release, and that prisoners who were denied their freedom after not being able to complete courses would have a case.

"It makes no sense to ration these programmes, which are excellent and for some offenders do lead to real change," he said. "The real holy grail is tackling rates of reoffending. But we have two elections coming up, which means in terms of crime and punishment politicians pander to the lowest common denominator and thoughtfulness and reason is thrown out of the window."

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson is to appear before Holyrood's justice committee today to defend the Government's plans to end automatic early release. Academics have already attacked the plans and last week called for a review of sentencing at the same time.

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "This Bill acknowledges the need for appropriate programmes to be in place for prisoners.

"Work is already under way within the Scottish Prison Service to transform the way they work with offenders to ensure that opportunities, including access to rehabilitation opportunities and purposeful activity, are maximised. Consideration of public safety is the determining factor in whether a prisoner should be authorised for release on parole."

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