Scottish First Minister John Swinney has attributed the ballooning cost of a new Barlinnie prison to nearly £1 billion to Liz Truss's short-lived tenure as UK Prime Minister, blaming 'significant inflation' driven by her policies.
John Swinney has attributed the soaring estimated costs of constructing a new Barlinnie prison to nearly £1 billion to Liz Truss . The First Minister has pointed to the former Tory leader's short tenure as the source of 'significant inflation,' which has driven up the price of building materials across the UK. The SNP leader faced scrutiny regarding the dramatic increase in the price tag for HMP Glasgow, scheduled to open in 2028.
An initial estimate in 2014 projected the facility's cost at £100 million. This means taxpayers could end up paying more for the prison than for the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.During First Minister's Questions, MSP Russell Findlay questioned the escalating costs, stating, 'Instead of building a high-security prison to lock up rapists and murderers, John Swinney thinks he is building either a luxury resort or a nature reserve.' Findlay continued, 'The Justice Secretary says it will be ‘based around small communities living together and supporting each other’. There will be an orchard of fruit trees, there will be beautiful landscape gardens, planting beds, poly tunnels, amphitheatre-like steps.' He added, 'Surely, we need some common sense by building a prison at minimum cost to taxpayers, not maximum benefit to prisoners.'The First Minister responded sharply, stating, 'I think the tone of Mr Findlay’s question is absolutely reprehensible and despicable.' Swinney further explained, 'This project is different to the one that was originally discussed about a decade ago. In the original proposition, it was based on estimates of a 700-place prison. And this will in fact be a prison that will accommodate over 1,340 prisoners - it is almost double the size.' He elaborated on the increased costs, citing a National Audit Office report that revealed a cost per prison place had risen by up to 259 per cent between the initial business case and the expected costs. Swinney concluded, 'The issues have arisen because of significant inflation in the construction costs with which we are wrestling. Why are we wrestling with these costs? We are wrestling with these costs because of the financial mismanagement of the Conservatives. The Liz Truss Budget, the higher interest rates she bequeathed on us all - and Mr Findlay was right behind the mess she created.
John Swinney Liz Truss Barlinnie Prison Inflation Construction Costs
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