Norway has asked neighboring Sweden to rent out vacant prison space to house some prisoners it doesn’t have room to incarcerate, Norwegian authorities announced Monday.
Sweden has recently closed some of its prisons because of a sharp drop in inmate numbers. Norwegian Justice Minister Anders Anundsen reached out to the Swedish government to request a prison rental arrangement to accommodate their waiting prisoners. Anundsen told state broadcaster NRK that a lease agreement would be a “win-win situation” for both countries, RT reports.
The Swedish government would not comment until it has considered the proposal.
Norway currently has 1,200 convicted criminals waiting for a prison cell. Swedish incarceration rates have been steadily dropping, due to relaxed drug laws and new prisoner rehabilitation programs.
[RT]