Scotland is about to get rid of prison for most crime and I am scared about the consequences

[CurdinHenry]

The purpose is to save money because they can't afford to divert cash to build new prisons.

They've found a couple of studies (interviews with 5 individual subjects) they claim support "restorative justice" instead.

This means no prison for most crimes (including if you sack off your community service for the crime). It means shoplifting, mugging, most violent and sexual offences will not result in prison so the only thing stopping the criminal is the social penalty they can expect or their own moral compass.

Punch a nurse, spit on a bus driver, steal a school kid's iPhone at knifepoint all on the same day. No prison.

I know you're probably thinking this is an exaggeration of the policy and I can understand why because it seems too absurd and mad. But it's happening later this year.

(Peter Murrell got 5 years 3 months so they probably think they've dodged that embarrassing parallel but some of their sex offenders got less than that - Jordan Linden etc).

From what friends tell me, parts of Edinburgh are going the same way, mostly due to anti social behviour from kids. Since the SNP has decided not to criminalise children, they know there will be no consequences. Because, as others have pointed out, alternatives to prison cost money and there is none. It's not unreasonable to look at alternatives if prison isn't working but restorative justice alone isn't going to do a damn thing. As PP pointed out, many people need a lot of state support from the cradle to the grave and there isn't the money for that.

The SNP loves to portray itself as a progressive country, more Norwegian, definitely not English, but like the baby box fiasco, it rarely seems to understand what it is borrowing from Nordic counties and can't seem to follow through once the press announcement is made.

So with that sort of track record, as someone living in Scotland, I am very worried about this proposal.

No it can just as easily mean "i don't think non-violent and or sexual offenders should be in jail..."

You pay less tax up to £29,500.
Then slightly more.
The public sector are paid way more in Scotland, which is incredible.
House prices are, on average, cheaper.
You have no student loans. My daughter pays £700 a month.