Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the latest recidivism rates for released prisoners receiving benefits.

This Government is reducing reoffending by giving prison leavers the tools to move away from crime.

The latest available data for England and Wales shows that 37.0% of adults released from custody between April 2021 and March 2022 were proven to have reoffended within 12 months of release.

We do not currently measure reoffending rates for released prisoners receiving benefits, on training schemes for job placements or in work (although the latter will be featured in future publications of proven reoffending statistics, with the first due for release in October 2024).

We do, however, know from previous research that offenders who leave custody into employment are up to nine percentage points less likely to reoffend, and there is a similar percentage point reduction in reoffending for those who have engaged in any form of in-prison education.