The partner of a man murdered by a prisoner on the run said he would still be alive if it wasn't for a "flaw" in the justice system.

James Wright stabbed Craig McClelland, 31, to death on Tweed Avenue, Foxbar, Paisley, in July last year while he was illegally at large for six months.

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson told MSPs on Tuesday he had asked the prisons and police watchdogs to "look at this matter thoroughly".

Mr McClelland, who had three young sons, had been on his way to visit his brother to play the Xbox.

The 31-year-old spent the hours before his death at home in Morar Drive, Foxbar, with his partner Stacy Wilcox, a student, and their three boys, aged five, two and eight months.

Speaking to STV News, Ms Wilcox said the father to her children would still be alive if it wasn't for procedures not being followed correctly.

She said: "The officials responsible would have known about the background history of this man.

"Yet he was not seen as a priority thus roaming about unlawfully for six months.

"As a result of this flaw in the justice system, Craig has lost his life.

"All for no reason, if procedures had been followed accordingly this murder could have been prevented.

"Craig should be at home with his family but instead he will never come home because the law failed to protect an innocent man who had everything to live for.

"The law is supposed to act like a shield and protect the innocent, however, in this instance it has failed to do so."

The couple were watching television and discussing a forthcoming holiday to Amsterdam before Mr McClelland's death.

Wright was jailed for life at the High Court in Livingston on Monday.

He had breached his curfew in February 2017 and was still free on July 23.

Wright approached Mr McClelland on the street and asked him for a lighter before stabbing him twice.

He had 16 previous convictions, including two for knife crimes, and will serve a minimum of 20 years behind bars.

Ms Wilcox added: "As a family we would like to enquire about a flaw in the justice system that James Wright slipped right through the net to retrieve him in a period of six months. That is 26 weeks, 182 days, 4380.005 hours.

"That is an incredible amount of time to attain a man who would be considered high risk to the public."

The case was also discussed at the Scottish government's cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

The Scottish Conservatives called for "a shake-up of the entire system to tilt it back in favour of the victim".

Justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: "Parole boards should provide more information explaining why prisoners are being released. And we need to give victims more rights to appeal.

"The SNP government is currently examining parole reform in Scotland. It is the perfect opportunity to ensure that victims are placed at the centre of the system, and not treated as an after-thought."