More than half of all hardened and violent criminals are not being given a prison sentence according to a new Civitas report, which severely criticises the Government’s claims to be tough on crime.

The Institute for the Study of Civil Society (Civitas) suggests that any future increase in crime will not be due to the recession, but to “the Government’s failure to imprison serious, violent and persistent offenders”.

The Civitas report shows that 60% of offenders, who have been convicted on more than 15 previous occasions, are not sent to prison after being convicted of a serious, indictable offence in a Crown Court..

The report also found that more than 70% of criminals convicted for “violence against the person” offences in 2007 were not given a custodial sentence by the court.

Civitas has shown how the number of robbers sent to prison has fallen from 72% in 2002 to 54 per cent in 2007.

David Green, director of Civitas, said: “The Government has predicted that crime will rise as a result of the recession, but on past performance increased unemployment will make only a small difference.

“Not many of the former employees of Woolworths, for example, are likely to become house burglars or car thieves”

It is far more likely that the Government’s failure to imprison serious, violent and persistent offenders will be the direct cause of any increase.”The report also found a big fall in the number of serious criminals who were jailed, down to just 24% of all serious offenders.

If the same sentencing standards as 2002 had been applied in 2007, an additional 10,000 criminals would have been in jail rather than being “free to endanger members of the public”, according tothe report.

The study also shows that fewer than 15 in every 100 criminals who were cautioned or convicted for a serious or indictable crime were given immediate custody.

In 2002 143,000 cautions were issued. In 2007 the figure increased to 205,000. The report said: “The typical attitude of criminals is that they “got off with a caution.

Fewer burglars are being jailed than ever before, with only 39% of burglars being given an immediate prison term, compared with 45% in 1997.

Liberal Democrat Shadow Justice Secretary, David Howarth added:

“Some serious and repeat offenders are not being brought to justice, while drug addicts and the mentally ill are languishing in our jails. 

If they were moved to more appropriate secure accommodation, sentences could be dished out to fit the crime, not to fit prison capacity.”