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SCOTLAND"S showpiece private prison is more violent than any other jail of its size in the country, a shock report by inspectors has revealed.

Addiewell jail has been dubbed the Addison - after the Radisson hotel chain - because cons enjoy flat-screen TVs, Sky Sports and en-suite bathrooms in their cells.

But there were more attacks on staff and inmates at Addiewell in 12 months than at Saughton in Edinburgh, Perth or Kilmarnock prisons, which are about the same size.

And the West Lothian jail has been hit by two major riots since it opened little more than two years ago at a cost of £130million.

As he unveiled his first ever report on Addiewell, Scotland's chief inspector of prisons, Brigadier Hugh Monro, said: "I worry about the violence here, as I do in all Scottish prisons - particularly the staff assaults."

And politicians described the level of attacks on Addiewell officers as "unacceptable" and "deeply disappointing".

Addiewell staff suffered 49 "minor" attacks - almost one a week - in the 12 months to October 2010. There were also two serious assaults on officers.

That compares to just 14 "minor" attacks and two serious staff assaults in the same period at Saughton, seven "minor" assaults at Kilmarnock and only five "minor" attacks at Perth.

Addiewell was also worst for attacks by cons on other prisoners. There were 16 serious assaults - more than at Saughton (15), Perth (11) and Kilmarnock (11).

The reports also records 278 "minor" prisoner-on-prisoner attacks at Addiewell. The figures for Saughton, Perth and Kilmarnock were 274, 195 and 154 respectively.

Rioting erupted at Addiewell in October 2009. About 20 cons ran amok and an officer needed treatment in hospital.

Just three months later, an officer was hit with a pool cue as violence erupted again.

Reacting to the inspector's report, Tory justice spokesman John Lamont MSP said: "Addiewell has, in a short space of time, developed a poor history of protecting staff. It is deeply disappointing that they have not addressed this problem.

"The level of violence in this prison is unacceptable. More must be done to ensure that better safety is provided so staff do not bear the brunt of it."

Lib Dem justice spokesman Robert Brown added: "I am particularly concerned at the high level of assaults against members of staff. They have the right to feel safe in their job."

Critics of private jails claim they cut corners on staffing to maximise profits.

But despite his concerns over the violence, Monro was generally pleased with what he found at Addiewell.

He noted that there were similar levels of attacks when Kilmarnock, another private prison, first opened.

And he said: "It's not unusual for levels of violence to be high as new prisons settle down.

"No members of staff said to me that they found the jail unsafe. On the contrary, they felt they had a relatively good relationship with prisoners."

Monro said the bulk of cons at Addiewell came from a fairly small part of Lanarkshire, and many of the attacks there may be down to "individual and gang animosities and feuds being brought into the prison" from the outside world.

Monro denied that Addiewell cons were pampered and found that staff at the jail coped well, despite being inexperienced.

He said the jail was clean and well-kept and access to education was good. And he urged other jails to adopt the systems used at Addiewell to combat smuggling of drugs and other "contraband".

"This is a positive report on a new prison," the report says.

"It has set high standards in many areas but the challenge will be to maintain those standards."

Addiewell director Audrey Park said: "We are pleased with this positive first report."

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said violence against staff in any workplace was unacceptable.

He added: "The government will keep a close watch on how the director and staff of Addiewell work with the Scottish Prison Service to address this, and the other issues raised."