More than 100 inmates in a single Scottish prison have signed up to receive kosher meals, despite the fact there were only nine Jewish prisoners in the whole of Scotland from 2013 to 2014.
The kosher food is prepared outside of the prison by an outsourced Jewish company and is delivered to the prison. The kosher meals cost more than regular prison meals and are seen as being “nicer” by the inmates.
“I think there is the assumption that by identifying as a particular religion, that you will get you better food in prison but that is not always the case,” said the prison spokesman Tom Fox. “And we have to do what we have to do; if someone says they are a particular religion we are not allowed to question that.”
In keeping with the government rules, inmates are served food in prison based on the religion they claim to be and at the moment there is no system in place that questions the inmates if that is really their religion or tests them. So, naturally, convicted criminals are happily taking advantage of these rules to get a better meal.