A comment by Alex Salmon, the Scottish First Minister, is perhaps relevant in the context of the concerns raised by those complaining that al Megrahi has lived longer than predicted at the time of his release:

"I'm not a doctor, but I think it's entirely possible that life expectancy in Greenock (Prison)is somewhat shorter than someone's life expectancy on progressive drugs and treatment in Tripoli."

The average age for men who die of natural causes while in prison in the UK is 56.