Prisoners get £5.5m for being freed early

The figure, announced yesterday, is the cost of an astonishing Labour scheme that means convicts who are freed early get taxpayers' money to make up for losing the free board and lodging they would have in jail.

Prisoners freed early under the End of Custody Licence (ECL) are not usually eligible for benefits immediately - so are given special handouts to tide them over until they can put in a claim for payments such as the Jobseekers' Allowance.

Those affected are mainly prisoners released because Labour has failed to build enough cells to keep up with demand.

Around 50,000 criminals have each received an average of £110.

Payments include a £46 discharge grant, plus a subsistence allowance of up to £168.24 a week.

But Shadow Justice Secretary Dominic Grieve blasted the scheme as shocking".

He added: "Hard-pressed taxpayers will be flabbergasted to learn they are compensating prisoners for being released early. It just adds insult to injury.

"Money that could have been spent holding and rehabilitating prisoners is spent releasing them to re-offend."

The licence scheme for the early release of some offenders was introduced two days after Gordon Brown became Prime Minister in 2007. It means that those serving between four weeks and four years in jail are released up to 18 days early.

This is in addition to the fact that offenders are usually released after serving just half their sentence.

Criminals freed early in this way are already known to have committed almost 1,000 crimes when they should have been behind bars.

Their offences include violence, including at least three killings.

The Conservatives argue that the victims would still be alive if he Government had ensured there were sufficient jail cells.

Only last year it emerged that two terrorists had been released early.

Around half the money for the scheme has come direct from prison governors' budgets. But another £3.11million has come from the Department for Work and Pensions.

Justice Minister David Hanson, in charge of the management of offenders, said: "These payments are made to prisoners who could not otherwise pay for food and accommodation, as they are not able to claim benefits while on an ECL."

Only early-release prisoners known to have more than £500 in personal funds do not receive any subsidy.

"We will end ECL when there is sufficient prison capacity to safely do so, " promised Mr Hanson.

In total, more than 2,000 foreign prisoners, including violent thugs, have been given payments under the scheme, adding up to at least £369,455.