The facts
- The Home Office review of the Act in 2002 estimated that reform of the Act would save £125 million.
- One in three men between the ages of 18 and 55 has a criminal record.
- 55% of men and 80% of women who are convicted have an offending history which lasts less than a year.
- By the age of 25, 43% of men who have offended are found not to have offended again after five years.
- In 1974 when the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act was passed, 3,574 people were given sentences of 30 months or more. By 2002 the estimated figure was 13,200.
