Holyrood committee backs prisoner voting rights

Christina McKelvie

The commitee began considering the issue last September after receiving a letter on the issue from Scottish Green MSP Patrick Harvie.

A majority of MSPs on the committee felt that, on balance, not allowing prisoners to vote did not serve the interests of society, prisoners’ rehabilitation or democracy.

The committee’s report argues that the current blanket ban is arbitrary, and is also being changed to an extent by Westminster for UK elections following the Hirst judgement from the European Court of Human Rights.

Christina McKelvie MSP, convener of the committee, said: “Prisoner voting is a fundamental issue. It strikes to the heart of questions like ‘what sort of society do we want to be’, ‘what is prison for’ and ‘what are the rights and responsibilities of a citizen’.

“After careful consideration of this issue, we as a cross-party committee have come to a majority view that the current ban should be lifted, and the right to vote be restored to all prisoners.

“We are acutely aware that prison is a place people go to be punished, and that there will be individual cases people find distasteful; but we need to think about rehabilitation, and not further excluding and alienating people from society.”

In a statement, Howard League Scotland welcomed the report and called for its central recommendation to be implemented.

The penal reform group said: “We strongly encourage the Government and Parliament to embrace today’s report. By extending the vote to all prisoners, the Scottish Parliament can send a clear signal about its commitment to justice and fairness, and Scotland will make a bold statement on the international stage about the inclusive and democratic character of our society. “