Crime and Civil Society Can We Become a More Law-abiding People?

Crime is said to be coming down, according to the British Crime Survey. But the BCS only began in 1981, when crime was at historically high levels. Furthermore, the BCS records only some crimes - less than half - with very significant omissions. This report shows that the government is failing to get even the most basic things right. Prison should get offenders off drugs and teach them a vocational skill. Most prisoners have a drug problem and find that they can feed their habit while inside. A lot of money is spent on education, but thousands of offenders leave prison without a workplace skill. Money is being wasted on rehabilitation schemes that have failed to reduce offending. There is an unwillingness to recognise either the deterrent effect of prison or its simple incapacitation effect - criminals don't commit crimes while they are locked up. We need a new crime-reduction strategy that will include social investment in institutions that encourage law-abiding behaviour, especially the family; that will reduce the net benefits of crime to the criminal; and will use the best methods to help prisoners to turn their lives around.