Sweden exploring the possibility of renting prison places abroad
The Swedish authorities are going to rent places for those sentenced to imprisonment in prisons of other countries – as stated by Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer, TASS reports
At a press conference, the Justice Minister said that next year a special commission will present proposals on which countries can be considered as ‘hosts’ and which categories of prisoners will be covered by this innovation.
Gunnar Strömmer explained that renting prison places in other countries will help solve the problem of their shortage in Sweden. “The goal is to relieve the burden on the home prison system,” the official said.
A special commission will have to find out whether changes in legislation will be required for the practical implementation of this initiative.
Denmark and Norway have already practiced renting prison places abroad. The first concluded a corresponding agreement with the Republic of Kosovo two years ago, and the second sent its prisoners to the Netherlands in 2015-2018.
