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Alternatives to Prison: Armed Forces

Asked by Gregory StaffordConservativeMinistry of JusticeTabled Answered 16 June 2025UIN 58534

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate her Department has made of the comparative annual cost per head of (a) incarceration and (b) military service for non-violent offenders.

Answered by Sir Nicholas Dakin

We have no current plans to introduce military service as an alternative to custody. Therefore, no comparative cost analysis has been undertaken.

Research indicates that sentences with a military focus do not reduce re-offending. The evidence shows that it is the intervention to address offending behaviour which makes a difference, not the military regime and physical toughness.

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