Scotland’s prison system is now among the deadliest in Europe, with the number of deaths in custody soaring by 60% in a single year, according to a hard-hitting new report from the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR).
The report found that 64 people died in Scottish prisons in 2024 — up from 40 in 2023 — making the country’s prison death rate comparable not to England or France, but to post-Soviet states like Azerbaijan and Moldova.
That stark comparison is more than symbolic.
“This is a public emergency,” said Professor Sarah Armstrong of the University of Glasgow, who led the SCCJR research team. “Our mortality rate is more than double what it was a decade ago. These are conditions closer to authoritarian regimes than modern democracies.”
More Than Just Prisons
The SCCJR’s figures don’t stop at prison walls.
In total, 244 people died in the care or custody of the Scottish state in 2024:
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138 were detained under mental health legislation
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64 died in prisons
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19 died following police contact
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3 in police custody
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16 were young people in care
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3 died in immigration detention
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1 was a person with learning disabilities in hospital
That’s nearly five deaths per week — many involving some of society’s most vulnerable individuals, often out of public view.
Causes and Patterns: Isolation, Neglect, Drugs
The majority of prison deaths were attributed to underlying health conditions, suicides, or drug-related causes, but the report argues these explanations mask systemic issues.
Professor Armstrong detailed recurring failures that mirror previous fatal accident inquiries: inadequate cell checks, health complaints dismissed as “drug-seeking,” and visible signs of mental deterioration ignored or unacted upon.
“Poor air quality, prolonged isolation, and lack of access to adequate healthcare — these are the silent contributors,” she said. “They wear people down until there’s nothing left.”
Case Studies That Haunt a Nation
Two names loom large in the public memory: Katie Allan and William Lindsay, both of whom died by suicide in Polmont Young Offenders Institution in 2018.
Katie, 21, was a university student serving a sentence for dangerous driving. William, 16, had been remanded there due to lack of space in secure children’s accommodation.
Both deaths, according to a recent Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI), “might have been avoided.”
Linda Allan, Katie’s mother and co-author of the SCCJR report, has become a prominent voice for reform. She’s calling for:
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Independent, timely investigations for every death in custody
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Public access to internal reviews
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Family involvement at every stage
“We don’t even know the names of most people dying under state care,” she said. “A Scotland where these things keep happening is a Scotland that doesn’t care.”
A System Struggling for Air
The Scottish Prison Service (SPS), already under pressure from overcrowding, staff shortages, and drug use, says it’s working urgently to fix what many see as a broken system.
“Every death is a tragedy,” said an SPS spokesperson. “We are determined to deliver systemic change at pace — change that is enduring, transparent, and impactful.”
But critics argue that commitment isn’t enough without data transparency and enforceable oversight.
Even the most basic question — how many people have died under state care and why — is difficult to answer with certainty. The SCCJR report suggests that even Scottish Government departments may lack a clear accounting.
Political Fallout Brewing
Opposition parties have seized on the figures as evidence of state failure. Scottish Labour’s justice spokesperson said the report “paints a picture of institutional neglect on a staggering scale.” The Scottish Greens called the findings “a shameful indictment” of state care.
In response, the Scottish Government issued a cautious statement:
“Every death in custody is tragic and a matter for concern. We are working closely with partners to ensure the safety of those in custody, and all recommendations from the Polmont FAI have been accepted and are being acted upon.”
Still, many remain unconvinced.
Professor Armstrong’s damning comparison — likening Scottish death rates to authoritarian states — is already circulating in political and legal circles. It’s likely to appear again in Holyrood hearings or future judicial reviews.
Police Under Spotlight Too
While the prison system drew most attention, the SCCJR also highlighted police custody and contact-related deaths — an area that continues to raise concerns, particularly involving vulnerable people with mental health issues.
Assistant Chief Constable Alan Speirs of Police Scotland said the force takes its duty of care seriously:
“Each year, thousands of people with complex needs have contact with the police. Every death is reviewed rigorously, and we notify the Crown Office and PIRC when necessary.”
But Linda Allan and others argue that procedural reviews often fall short of what grieving families need: clarity, accountability, and change.
What Comes Next?
A series of recommendations from previous inquiries, including Sheriff Collins’s FAI into the deaths at Polmont, remain in progress. But campaigners say piecemeal reforms and slow delivery won’t fix a system that has already failed too many.
For now, the Scottish public is left with disturbing statistics and unanswered questions.
How many more will die behind locked doors before something shifts?
