To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the transfer of suspects and convicted criminals to and from an independent Scotland, whether or not it remains a member of the European Union.

Both the UK Government and Scottish Government have said that there can be no “pre-negotiations” on independence in advance of the referendum. The question of how the transfer of prisoners to and from the Scottish prison estate and other parts of the United Kingdom would be affected by Scottish independence cannot be answered now because it would depend on multiple negotiations that could only take place if people in Scotland vote to leave the UK in September’s referendum.