Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi calls the plan a "stupid notion that would be nothing more than a waste of taxpayer dollars".

US President Donald Trump is seeking $152m (£115m) to reopen the infamous Alcatraz prison as part of his proposed budget for the 2027 fiscal year.

Located near San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, the site, also known as The Rock, was once regarded as one of America’s most notorious prisons, but has served as a tourist attraction in recent years.

The budget request is seeking money “to rebuild Alcatraz as a state-of-the-art secure prison facility”, with funds covering the first year of costs.

The plan has been met with scepticism by a number of politicians in California, with questions raised about the final cost of the project and the challenges of running Alcatraz as an active prison.

The maximum security facility was closed in 1963. As a tourist site, it is currently run by the National Park Service.