Press release: Efus’ elected members take a stand on the prevention of reoffending

Press release
23 November 2011

Efus’ elected members take a stand
for the prevention of reoffending

Following recent events raising the issue of reoffending, in France and in the United Kingdom in particular, the European Forum for Urban Security (Efus) and its members wish to draw the attention on the necessity of making prevention of reoffending an essential investment and a priority for local authorities.

In the light of the work it has lead since 2007 on the topic of prevention of reoffending, through its Executive Committee gathered on October 13 and 14 in Nantes, Efus adopted a resolution aiming to signal a common position of its members and to formulate a number of recommendations on this subject.

Thus, the Executive Committee of the European Forum for Urban Security composed of elected members and European local authorities affirm that:

  • Far from policies that promote imprisonment as the main answer to crime and reoffending, prisons and detention should be considered as a last resort;
  • Taking into account the important share of reoffending in crime, alternative solutions to detention should always be favoured;
  • The role of cities must be acknowledged as an essential part of the search for alternative solutions to imprisonment and of the reinsertion of former prisoners, in coordination with Justice and penal institutions. In order to be successful, the process of reinsertion must start the moment an offender is arrested, and be carried on during and after imprisonment.

If you wish to gather more information on this issue, you can download the entire resolution and its 12 recommendations here.

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Presscontact:

Elsa Fontanille

Tél: + 33 1 40 64 49 00

communication@efus.eu

On Efus’ work on reoffending:
More information: www.stop-reoffending.org