John Swinney will face First Minister’s Questions amid the ongoing “emergency situation” inside Scotland’s jails.
The Scottish Prison Service announced last month the prison population had hit an all-time high, with 8,430 people in custody.
As a consequence, justice secretary Angela Constance brought forward the SNP Government’s third early prisoner release scheme, which was backed by the Criminal Justice Committee last week.
She told the committee the proposals are only being discussed due to the current “emergency situation” in Scotland’s prisons.
The plans will see the release of prisoners who are sentenced to less than four years and are due to be freed within 180 days of certain dates between November and April 2026.
The scheme must also be approved by the Holyrood chamber at a later date before coming into force.
However, the plan has been heavily criticised by opposition parties
Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay previously said the Government had “essentially ripped up” the sentences given to prisoners who are to be released early.
He said the SNP have “failed to build the prison capacity the country needs”.
Scottish Labour justice spokeswoman Pauline McNeill also opposed the plans as she said: “There are consequences, it isn’t a straight-forward issue and we want to release the pressure in our prisons, but if we do so this is the third time we’ve been here.
“My main concern is that I just do not want to endorse an approach of managing prisoners in this way.”
The First Minister could also face questions over his SNP Government’s management of the national health service after NHS Lothian maternity services came under fire last week.
Inspectors found that staffing shortages and a “culture of mistrust” led to delays and patients being harmed at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
The review by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) found 26 areas in total where required standards had not been met.
The Scottish Government subsequently escalated NHS Lothian maternity services to level three of the NHS support and intervention framework to set things right.
FMQs will be broadcast from the Scottish Parliament at midday on Thursday.
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