The British government confirmed last night that it was "still considering" a list of seven loyalist prisoners in England and Scotland, including a number who have requested transfers to Scotland and the downgrading of their security status. The list was presented by the Progressive Unionist Party last month.
The list, which is part of the British government's "confidence-building" programme, under which a number of republican prisoners have been transferred to Northern Ireland in recent months, includes Jason Campbell (24), whose transfer from Scotland to the Maze was agreed "in principle" on Tuesday. Campbell was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in 1985. It is understood that preparations for his transfer between the prison authorities in Scotland and in Northern Ireland are continuing.
Campbell's move was in some doubt earlier this week when the Scottish Office Minister, Mr Henry McLeish, said he was concerned about the transfer and requested an immediate report into the decision. The SNP MP, Ms Roseanna Cunningham, also raised doubts about the transfer and said Campbell was "a thug" who had been imprisoned for murder "with no motivation other than senseless bigotry".
However, after reading the report and signalling his approval of the transfer, Mr McLeish refused to add to a statement from the Scottish Office that acknowledged the "sensitivity" of the case. Prisoners can request a transfer to a prison closer to their families or to where they wish to settle after release. It is understood Campbell's uncle and a cousin live in Northern Ireland.
The six other prisoners are: Charles Muir, whose request for a transfer from a prison in England to Scotland is "under consideration"; David Russell, whose transfer from England to Scotland has been agreed; Stuart Woods, whose Category B status will be reviewed in January 1998; Alastair Woods and James Galloway, whose security status has been downgraded from Category B to Category C; and James Little, a prisoner whose whereabouts has still to be established.
Three of the men - Stuart Woods, Alastair Woods and Galloway - were sentenced to four years each on assault and abduction charges in March. Russell was convicted of the possession of guns and ammunition last year and sentenced to three-and-a-half years.
A spokesman at the Northern Ireland Office said he believed Little was serving his sentence in Durham prison but when inquiries were made he could not be found. Fifteen other men with the same name appear on the prison lists in England and Scotland, the spokesman added, and the NIO was still attempting to locate him.
Sinn Fein reacted angrily to Campbell's transfer yesterday, claiming the speed with which the request had been dealt with raised questions about the government's treatment of republican prisoners.