Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill has endorsed extending community sentences and said that prison sentences of six months or less are "both ineffective and of no practical benefit to communities."

He made his remarks as figues published today showed the reconviction rates across Scotland.

"Historically Scotland has had an unacceptably high rate of reoffending. Today's statistics reinforce the trend of recent years, a trend that sees three-quarters of those sentenced to less than six months in prison gain further convictions within two years of release. By contrast, three out of five of those sentenced to community service have a clean record after a similar time.

"Short sentences simply don't work. They are both ineffective and of no practical benefit to communities. If we are serious about improving the safety of our communities we need to ensure that our prisons focus on the most serious criminals for whom prison is the only option.

"So while we are investing 120 million pounds each year in modernising the prison estate and building new prisons, we are also investing in improving the community service provision across Scotland.