Government sets out plans to cut reoffending rates

The government has unveiled plans for the resettlement of offenders - but stands accused of watering down the amount of assistance following a tabloid backlash.

An early version of the report from the social exclusion unit recommended that offenders should be given a one-off payment of £100 when they leave prison.

It also recommended extending the period of time that the government pays an offender's mortgage.

The final report, however, has dropped all mention of the cash amount - prompting claims of a u-turn.

Instead the final report simply says that discharge grants should be increased.

The report, "Reducing re-offending by ex-prisoners", reveals that re-offending by people released from prison accounts for an estimated one million crimes each year and costs the country around £11 billion annually.

It calls for offenders to sign a "going straight contract".

The scheme, to be targeted initially at 18 to 20-year-olds, would see prisoners being asked to sign a contract setting out what was expected of them throughout their sentence, both in prison and in the community.

Under the proposed system, offenders will commit themselves to a full-time package of rehabilitative programmes and support, and commit prison wages to a reparation fund for the victims of crime.

Launching the report, John Prescott said: "Breaking the cycle of re-offending is a vital part of our overall drive to cut crime and build safer communities. Prisoners are being presented with a contract.

"We offer them the support they need to get over the problems that contribute to crime in the first place.

"This could include drug addiction, mental health problems, homelessness, family breakdown and unemployment. In return they have to take responsibility for their actions and work on their problems."

Ministers say the "revolving door" syndrome must be tackled if tough targets for crime reduction are to be met.

According to Home Office data, two in three criminals reoffend after their release from prison.

The figure is higher amongst young male prisoners - three quarters of whom reoffend after their release from detention.

The report examines ways to cut down the number of released prisoners who become homeless or who find themselves unable to secure work.

It says more support mechanisms should be put in place to ensure that prisoners are housed upon their release.

The report also argues that more should be done to ensure that inmates can keep their housing for longer while in jail. This could be achieved by paying inmates housing benefit for six months rather than the current 13 weeks.

But groups representing offenders said the government have backed down on increasing the benefits of offenders following press criticism of the draft proposals.

Mark Leech of the reform charity, Unlock, said ministers are letting offenders down.

"For me, sat here five years later, it is more and more of what I call the blah-blah-Blair politics," he told the Today programme.

The shadow home secretary, Oliver Letwin, said the government's plans are unlikely to "see the light of day".

"Three out of four young offenders re-offend within two years, and this won't be solved by a brief kneejerk reaction," he said.

"If this is Number 10's idea for a serious rehabilitative programme they need to think again. Getting people out of the cycle of crime will involve far more than just paying their rent.

"We have proposed serious long-term rehabilitative programmes for young offenders: this will involve a lot more than merely paying their rent."

The Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, Simon Hughes, said it was "imperative" that prisoners leaving jail were given better support.

"A much better package for those released from prison, with real practical supports, will be much more useful than having prisoners sign contracts promising they will go straight," he said.

"All too often former prisoners do want to start their lives afresh, but the pressures that they find themselves under when they are first released simply pushes them back into a life of crime. Real support, and not soft words, is what is needed to properly rehabilitate offenders."