Community Service Orders ‘better than jail’

SEVERAL thousand offenders are being imprisoned in cramped jails when they could serve their sentences in the community with significant savings to the taxpayer, a Government body has found.

A Department of Justice report said Community Service Orders (CSOs) were a “very cost-effective option” and prisons were almost seven times more expensive.

The expert report said the average cost of CSOs was €4,295 per offender, compared with €27,478 per offender in prison.