On 28 April 2022, the Mental Welfare Commission published a themed visit report entitled ‘Mental Health Support in Scotland’s Prisons 2021: Under-Served and Under-Resourced’. It advised that little had changed in relation to the outcome for prisoners’ mental health since the last themed visit in 2011 and that passing responsibility from SPS to NHS had offered no discernible improvements. It reiterated that seriously and acutely mentally ill people were still being housed in prisons instead of in hospital-based care.

On 02/11/21 HMIPS published its Annual Report 2020- 2021, advising that overcrowding, social isolation, an ageing estate, access to purposeful and rehabilitative activity, the numbers on remand, the high prevalence of mentally unwell people, the backlog in offending behaviour work and access to consistent health remained “highly problematic”. It noted human rights entitlement of access to fresh air was routinely compromised during COVID-19 outbreaks and that “IPMs continued to receive multiple requests regarding perceived barriers to        progression from prisoners. These concerned the suspension of offending behaviour programmes, delays in temporary release applications and general queries related to risk management decisions and integrated case management processes”.