Estonian Justice Minister Liisa Pakosta has rejected the idea that Estonia could house prisoners from Britain’s overcrowded prisons, ERR News reports.
Pakosta told the BBC that, despite a deal with Sweden last week to house up to 600 Swedish criminals in the half-empty Tartu prison from August, Estonia is not renting out prison cells to other countries.
Both the British Conservatives and the populist Reform Party have floated the idea of renting prisons in other countries, including Estonia, to combat overcrowding in British prisons and prevent large numbers of prisoners from being released early. The Labour Party considered such an option as early as 2024, but talks with Estonia ended without a result.
Pakosta pointed out that Estonia has not received a request from the British to rent prison places, and even if a request were made, the answer would be a unanimous no. She added that
such a proposal would not only be misleading or unacceptable, it would also require a complete negative answer.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government plans to release thousands of prisoners before they have served their full sentences in early October. The hope is to relieve prisons, which are currently almost full.
Downing Street did not rule out the possibility of renting places in foreign prisons on the 10th of August, but a spokesman for Burnham’s office said that the government is currently focusing on building additional capacity in the country’s domestic system. He added that renting prisons abroad is not a simple process, and the necessary legal changes and negotiations would take several years.
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