A HOLYROOD committee said it is likely to expect the new Barlinnie jail in Glasgow to be delayed and that there needs to be a contingency plan for the Victorian prison.

A new jail is to be built with a site earmarked on the old gasworks at Provan on the other side of the M8 from the current site.

The jail is currently over capacity and the Scottish Parliament Public Audit Committee warned that there needs to be a plan in place should it become uninhabitable.

In a report published today, the committee says ten years of capital underspend to stay within budget should have raised serious concerns at an early stage given the deteriorating state of prisons. The impact of the delay in the capital programme cannot be overestimated.

It said urgent action is needed to address under-lying pressures on the prison service, with solutions required from across the justice system.

The reports stated”Given the history of the prison service capital programme to date, it would seem that further delays in the completion of HMP Barlinnie are likely. It is crucial that the SPS and the Scottish Government anticipate and plan for such delays and put in place robust contingency plans.

The Scottish Government and the SPS must take all steps to ensure that the proposed timetable for the completion of a replacement for HMP Barlinnie is adhered to because if HMP Barlinnie fails, the whole prison system is at risk.”

The new jail is due to be built by 2025 but Colin McConnell Scottish Prison Service last year cautioned it could take longer.

Jenny Marra MSP, Convener of the Public Audit Committee, said; “Audit Scotland says HMP Barlinnie presents the “biggest risk of failure in the prison system” but warns there is no clear contingency plan for accommodating the 1,460 prisoners it currently holds should it fail.

“Developing a contingency plan for Barlinnie in the event that it fails must be of the highest priority. Given the state of prisons generally, the Scottish Government and the SPS must develop robust contingency plans should any other part of the prison estate become uninhabitable.”