MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
News Release (No:037/08) issued by The Government News Network on 9
May 2008
The number of
adult re-offenders fell 7.4% from 2000 to 2005, according to adult
re-offending statistics released today. This indicates that the
Government is likely to have achieved its target of a 5% reduction
by 2006.1
There was an 11.4% fall in the number of adult re-offences, and a
17.4% fall in the number of juvenile re-offences committed between
2000 and 2005.
The number of adult re-offences classified as serious rose from
0.78 serious re-offences per 100 offenders in 2000 to 0.88 in
2005; an increase of 0.001 serious offences per offender. The
number of juvenile re-offences classified as serious fell from
0.91 serious re-offences per 100 offenders in 2000 to 0.90 in 2005.
On 7 May, Justice Minister David Hanson announced improvements to
the way the government measures its performance in reducing
re-offending. Statistics have been produced under the new measures
for adults and juveniles over the period 2000 to 2005. These show
the number of re-offences committed, and the number of re-offences
which are classified as serious. This information will allow
comparisons to be made over time.
Justice Minister David Hanson MP, said:
"Reducing re-offending remains a significant challenge. It
is gratifying to see that today's results indicate that we
will meet and likely exceed our current target for reducing adult
re-offending. With every offender who becomes an ex-offender, our
streets become safer.
"Statistics published today also show a substantial
reduction in the numbers of both adult and juvenile re-offences.
The new measures will support our drive to tackle prolific crime
by capturing more complete information. They will form the basis
on which we will set demanding new targets for the future.
"I am of course concerned by the increase in adult serious
re-offending since 2000, although this should be seen in the
context of our policy to improve reporting of sex offences. There
is still less than one serious offence per 100 re-offenders, and
we are absolutely committed to reducing this further."
Notes to Editors
1. The adult re-offending statistics are available on the
Ministry of Justice website at: http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/reoffendingofadults.htm
2. The juvenile re-offending statistics are available on the
Ministry of Justice website at: http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/reoffendingjuveniles.htm
3. The written Ministerial statement announcing the new
re-offending measures is available on the Ministry of Justice
website at: http://www.justice.gov.uk/news/announcement070508a.htm
4. A guide to the way the new re-offending measures, and the old
measure is available at: http://www.justice.gov.uk/news/announcement070508b.htm
1 This is set under the old two-year measure which takes into
account how statistically likely offenders are to re-offend, based
on factors such as age, gender and criminal history.
http://www.justice.gov.uk