Old hospitals or Army barracks will not be used to house prisoners to cope with rising numbers of inmates in Scottish jails.

Fergus Ewing, Community Safety Minister, was challenged by MSPs on the Scottish Parliament Justice Committee yesterday over rising prisoner numbers.

Last week, Scottish Conservative leader Annabel Goldie told the UK Tory party conference that disused public buildings should be investigated to be converted into prisons and MSPs took up the theme again yesterday.

However, the idea was ruled out by Mr Ewing. He said: "There are no establishments that could be converted into prisons."