Meanwhile, the Chief Inspector of Prisons for England and Wales, Dame Anne Owers, warned that “overpopulated” prisons are “increasingly brittle”.

She said the government should invest in alternatives to locking people up. Mr Clarke told judges at their annual Mansion House Dinner in London that “no-one can prove cause and effect” for why crime fell in the 1990s.

His comments come after former Tory home secretary Michael Howard recently criticised him for attacking high imprisonment rates.

BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw said the justice secretary’s comments appeared to be a swipe at Mr Howard, who coined the phrase “prison works” in 1993.

In his speech on Tuesday night, Mr Clarke said: “There is and never has been, in my opinion, any direct correlation between spiralling growth in the prison population and a fall in crime.

“Crime has fallen in Britain throughout a period of both rising prison populations, and throughout the same period of economic growth, with strong employment levels and rising living standards.

“No-one can prove cause and effect. The crime rate fell but was this the consequence of the policies of my successors as home secretary or, dare I gently hint, mine as chancellor of the exchequer at the beginning of a period of growth and strong employment? We will never know.”

The justice secretary, who favours rehabilitation and community sentences, said crime had fallen in Canada in the 1990s after the prison population was cut by 11% and that crime did not rise significantly in Finland when similar measures had been taken there.

Inflated Prisons
Dame Anne Owers’ warning that prisons are now increasing brittle came in her valedictory lecture to the Prison Reform Trust on Tuesday night.

She said prisons “had become better places” but progress in rehabilitating offenders was slow because of the growing prison population.

She called upon ministers to “do things differently” in the “age of austerity” and invest in alternatives to prisons.

“We now have an inflated prison system in a shrinking state. It [is] crucial to invest in ‘not prison’ – both instead of and after prison,” she said.

She also issued a warning over the number of inmates – one in six of the prison population – serving indeterminate sentences, saying they were a source of “increasing volatility and potential disruption”.

“This is and will continue to be a significant upward driver of the prison population,” she said.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said as part of the “rehabilitation revolution”, the government was working towards providing a “fit for purpose prison estate” by building new prisons and closing “inefficient and worn out places”.

“The government has announced its intention to conduct a full assessment of sentencing policy to ensure that it is effective in deterring crime, protecting the public, punishing offenders and cutting re-offending,” he added.

The researchers scanned noses in 3D and characterised them by tip, ridge profile and the nasion, or area between the eyes.

They found 6 main nose types: Roman, Greek, Nubian, hawk, snub and turn-up. Since they are hard to conceal, the study says, noses would work well for identification in covert surveillance.

The researchers say noses have been overlooked in the growing field of biometrics, studies into ways of identifying distinguishing traits in people.

“Noses are prominent facial features and yet their use as a biometric has been largely unexplored,” said the University of Bath’s Dr Adrian Evans.

“Ears have been looked at in detail, eyes have been looked at in terms of iris recognition but the nose has been neglected.”

The researchers used a system called PhotoFace, developed by researchers at the University of the West of England, Bristol and Imperial College, London, for the 3D scans.

Several measurements by which noses can be recognised were identified and the team developed recognition software based on these parameters.

“This initial work is nowhere as good as iris identification but the nose has pros and cons,” said Dr Evans.

“There’s no magic biometric that solves all your problems. Irises are a powerful biometric but can be difficult to capture accurately and can be easily obscured by eyelids or glasses. People can easily cover up their ears, with their hair for example.

“Of course you can have a broken nose or wear a false nose or have plastic surgery but to have nose surgery to change your identity is fairly drastic.

“Irises are very good for recognition but you can put in dilation drops which change the iris completely. No technique is infallible,” he said.

The research is based on a study of 40 noses and the data base has now been expanded to 160 for further tests to see if the software can pick out people from a larger group and distinguish between relatives.

Dr Evans hopes the method can be proven to be effective on this larger sample. “The technique certainly shows potential, perhaps to be used in combination with other identification methods,” he said.

The National Audit Office found many prisoners were spending all day in their cells rather than being engaged in training and rehabilitation.

It added there was also “little evidence” the risk of short-sentence prisoners reoffending had been reduced.

The government said it would take the report’s recommendations forward.

Of all those in jail, prisoners serving less than a year have the highest reoffending rates and the most convictions, an average of 16.

Around 60,000 prisoners are jailed for less than 12 months each year, costing taxpayers £300m.

They are mostly convicted of theft and minor violent crimes and at any one time make up nearly one in 10 of prisoners in England and Wales; the prison population is currently about 82,000.

Value for money
Most spend as few as 45 days inside, and are released automatically at the halfway point of their sentence.

But in that time they are not given “appropriate assistance” to help them turn around their lives, the report said.

The NAO found that activities for this group of offenders were “inadequate”. About half were not involved in work or courses and spent almost all day in their cells.

The report concludes that short jail terms do not offer value for money. A six-week spell in prison costs £4,500 – £300 more than a highly intensive two-year community order involving unpaid work and rehabilitation schemes.

And overall, with 60% of short-sentenced prisoners committing another crime within a year of getting out, the social and economic cost to the country was between £7bn and £10bn a year.

But John Thornhill, chairman of the Magistrates Association, argued that alternatives to custodial sentences were often simply not available.

He told BBC Radio 5 live: “In my area of Merseyside we have a programme called Intensive Alternative To Custody. Magistrates like using that particular order… but [it] is not available across the country.

“It’s only available in six areas and we’re told that once the pilot scheme’s finished that alternative will not be there.”

The president of the Prison Governors Association, Paul Tidball, says magistrates had been criticised for being “so free” with the use of short-term sentences, which did not work.

‘Too short’
He told Radio 5 live: “I’ve heard the Magistrates Association in the past… saying prisons should do more with them [prisoners] while they have them.

“But if you’ve only got someone for six weeks, there’s a limit to what can be done.”

He added resources should be concentrated on those at greatest risk of reoffending, and said there should be better investment in communities in the first place to prevent crime.

Former inmate Craig Morrison called for earlier intervention by therapists and more robust community sentences to tackle problems such as drugs.

He said he spent his short stints in jail scrubbing floors and in the gym.

“It was too short a time to do anything rehabilitative with me. You know, I’d just get out and carry on from where I left off, playing catch-up, go out, committing crime straight away,” he told Radio 5 live.

“It sounds messed up but I was quite comfortable where I was. I was brought up in care since 12 and I accepted that was my lot in life.

“I had a moment of clarity – unfortunately it was years down the line. I had to go through years of therapy to realise how messed up my life was.”

Overcrowding
The auditors praised the efforts of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), which runs prisons and probation, in keeping inmates safe – despite overcrowding.

Former Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair said it was important prisoners who breached bail or committed offences on bail knew they would be sent back inside.

He supported putting more minor offenders to work in the community on “not very pleasant” tasks that had “an element” of rehabilitation, to free more space in jails.

“It certainly doesn’t need to be a chain gang, it can be just a high-glow jacket that shows that this is community punishment taking place,” he said.

Amyas Morse, head of the NAO, said achieving NOMS’ goal of reducing reoffending by short-sentenced prisoners was “challenging” because so many prisoners spent so few weeks inside.

“However, it is reasonable to expect progress towards that goal. More coherent plans for prisoners, tailored to reducing their risk of reoffending, would be a good first step,” he said.

Phil Wheatley, director general of the NOMS, said he welcomed the report and would take the recommendations forwards.

‘Damning indictment’
Juliet Lyon, director of the Prison Reform Trust, said: “The revolving door of prison and crime costs the taxpayer billions and does little or nothing to reduce offending.

“The evidence is clear that community penalties, treatment for addicts, mental healthcare and sorting out housing and employment all work better than a short prison sentence.”

Jon Collins, of the Criminal Justice Alliance, said rather than spending money on a “futile attempt” to make short sentences work, the government should focus on keeping people out of jail to free up space and resources to better rehabilitate those who needed to be inside.

The Tories said the report was a “damning indictment of Labour’s prison failure” and pledged to introduce a “rehabilitation revolution”.

Mr Straw was speaking after a meeting with victim campaigners to discuss prisoners using social networking sites to taunt families. They will look at ways to stop inmates using smuggled mobile phones to access webpages and abuse their victims.

Mr Straw said the 30 offending pages had been removed within 48 hours. He also said he was “reassured by the co-operation which we’re receiving from Facebook” and said it was agreed a better system for policing websites was needed.

‘Devious, manipulative people’
“This is horrible, profoundly disturbing… and it’s deeply offensive to public morality,” he said.

Mr Straw met with Margaret and Barry Mizen, the parents of teenager Jimmy Mizen who was murdered at a bakery in south-east London in May 2008, and Richard Taylor, the father of 10-year-old schoolboy Damilola Taylor, who was killed in a north Peckham estate in November 2001.

Mr Mizen said the talks were “encouraging” but he wanted Facebook to be “more responsible”.

He said: “I’m sure Facebook is a massive organisation and there’s lots of money floating around. If you have to spend a bit more on monitoring, then you have just got to do it.”

The Justice Secretary also met representatives from Facebook and Ofcom. He said it might be possible to change the rules under which prisoners are freed on parole and temporary licence, to make it “explicit” that they cannot make use of sites in this way.

“We are getting much tougher about people smuggling telephones into prison and using them.

“I’m afraid we’re dealing with crooks. Devious, manipulative people who actually have no respect for their own bodies so they push these mobile telephones into their body orifices.

Prisoner taunts
To combat this, visitors are made to sit on special chairs that scan people internally, he said. Mr Straw also said there is evidence that the families of some prisoners have been involved in updating sites.

In one case, Nottingham gangster Colin Gunn said he could not wait to see fear in people’s eyes when he got home.

Gunn, who ordered the revenge killings of John and Joan Stirland at their bungalow in Lincolnshire, used Facebook to let his friends know what was on his mind.

Jade Braithwaite, 20, the killer of 16-year-old Ben Kinsella, used the same website to boast he was “down but not out”. He also said he wanted a remote control so he could “mute or delete people when I need to”. Facebook later took down the offending page.

And prolific burglar Roy Boodle, 28, taunted detectives for 18 months saying he could not be caught, but was eventually jailed for three-and-a-half years. All the major social networking sites have policies to remove material considered to cause harassment or distress.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said earlier: “We recognise it is deeply distressing for victims and their families and friends and we have made it clear to Facebook that we do not think it acceptable or appropriate for such profiles to remain active, something Facebook agrees with.

“If material is considered to be causing harassment or distress, or constitutes illegal activity, Facebook’s policy is to remove the offending account.”

The cross-party Justice Committee said evidence showed community punishments would have a better chance of cutting re-offending. The committee said a £4.2bn prison building plan was a “costly mistake”. But the Ministry of Justice said its current strategy was working and reoffending rates had been falling.

There are more than 82,000 people in prison in England and Wales, down from a record high of nearly 84,000 in summer 2009. With a major building programme under way, there are likely to be 96,000 prison places by 2014.

But in a detailed and lengthy report, the justice committee says prison should be a last resort, with thousands of criminals dealt with entirely in the community.

It said millions of pounds could be diverted from the prison system into improving local public services that had a more direct affect on cutting offending, including education and drug addiction programmes.

The MPs said: ”We are worried that the government seems to accept the inevitability of a high and rising prison population and remains committed to building larger prisons. We are convinced that prison building on this scale will prove a costly mistake.

”The prison population could be safely capped at current levels and then reduced over a specified period to a safe and manageable level likely to be about two-thirds of the current population.”

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said prisons were investing in drug treatment, training and education. “We have bolstered community punishments to ensure they are tough, innovative and offer locally based alternatives to custody,” he said. “People who commit serious offences are going to prison for longer and are being rehabilitated – and the rate of re-offending continues to fall.”

The committee said it acknowledged that its proposals to shift funding from prisons to communities were complex – but added reoffending could only be significantly cut if money was put into local authorities best placed to turn around an offender’s life.

Chairman, Sir Alan Beith, said: “Whoever forms the next government, they face a choice between unsustainable ‘business-as-usual’ in the criminal justice system, and making some radical decisions.

“It is the responsibility of governments and Parliament to protect citizens from crime by using the taxes they pay as effectively as possible. And that is not what is happening.

“A demand-led policy of building ever more prison places is being fuelled by political and media pressure for more and longer custodial sentences, diverting resources away from measures which are more likely to prevent future crime.”

He said the number of women offenders in prison had increased “sharply and disproportionately” in recent years.

A recent report by Holyrood’s Equal Opportunities Committee said too many women were being locked up. There has been about a 90% rise in the number of women being sent to Cornton Vale, Scotland’s only female prison, over the past 10 years, compared with a 16% rise for the male prisoner population.

The Equal Opportunities Committee report, which was published in November, found that 80% of female inmates have mental health problems, almost all have problems with drug or alcohol addiction and many have children on the outside.

Mr MacAskill said the extra funding demonstrated how seriously the government viewed the issue of female offenders.

He added: “The number of women offenders in the criminal justice system – especially the number in jail – has risen very sharply and disproportionately over recent years.

“Although women remain a very small proportion of the total prisoner population, the number of women prisoners has almost doubled over the 10 year period to 2007-08 – to a daily average of around 420.

“In general, and as the committee report recognises, the health and other needs of women offenders are more complex and wide-ranging than those of male offenders. So that is a range of needs that need to be addressed, be it in prison or in the community.

“I will be expecting to see positive results – that means more support for women to get their lives back on track.”

Each individual CJA will be allowed to decide how best to use the additional money.

But it could be used to introduce projects similar to the pilot support service with Barnardos for women from the south west of Scotland released from prison, and the Think Again project aimed at developing skills and confidence for women offenders in the Lothian and Borders.

The move was revealed as Scotland struggled back to work through the big freeze yesterday.

Desperate councils, who are under intense pressure because of the weather, have drafted in gangs of criminals as part of their efforts.

Last night, the Scottish government said offenders on council-run community service schemes had been involved in the clear-up since the festive period.

A spokesman said: “Here offenders are doing something necessary, rather than sitting in prison, giving nothing back to the peo ple they have harmed.”

Harriet Dempster, president of the Association of Directors of Social Work, said: “It’s a time for all hands to the pump and it’s a time where community service squads can, under supervision, make a positive payback: reducing risks of older people falling and enabling people to get out and about and back to normal .”

The government were unable to say how many offenders were involved or where t hey were at work. But justice secretary Kenny MacAskill confirmed he would be visiting one of the schemes in Dunfermline tomorrow.

Confirmation of the move came after a call from former Scots Tory leader David McLetchie earlier yesterday. He said: “It would make sense for those criminals who have been sentenced to repay their debt to society through community service to be put to work in clearing the snow and ice.”

A Scottish g overnment spokesman said: “People on communit y service orders have been out clearing the streets for the past few weeks.

“This type of work demonstrates clearly the potential for work by offenders in the community to make Scotland safer.”

But it is not the fear of being locked up that is making criminals think twice before stealing, fighting or trading in drugs. The prospect of being forced to give up smoking is apparently far more frightening.

The £42million jail, which opened last year, is Europe’s only non-smoking prison. Inmates and guards are not allowed to smoke either in or outside the buildings.

With just under 100 prisoners, there is plenty of room for more, with at least 40 cells empty. The Isle of Man, already one of the safest places in Britain, has seen a 14 per cent drop in crime since the jail opened, or rather closed, its doors in August 2008.

Prisoners arriving at the jail are told they have no choice but to give up smoking and are offered nicotine patches and counselling to help them cope. An Isle of Man police source said: ‘There are 200 officers on this island and anything which makes our lives easier is welcome news.

‘It has become a standing joke that when we nick someone we remind them that if they get sent down they’ll have to come off the cigarettes – their faces are a picture.’

In the last 12 months, the number of burglaries has plunged by more than 35 per cent, there has been a 25 per cent drop in the number of assaults, and the number of people caught stealing cars has fallen by seven per cent.

Domestic assaults fell 11 per cent and criminal damage offences dropped eight per cent.

The crime rate on the Isle of Man was already low, with experts saying it is down to ‘low unemployment and high community spirit’, but also that the criminal justice system takes a hard line on crimes, with even small crimes often resulting in imprisonment.

One former prisoner, who spent six months there, said the smoking ban had cons ‘crawling up the walls’ in desperation for a nicotine fix. The inmate, who didn’t want to be named, said today: ‘As soon as you get to the prison they take your fags and lighter off you.

‘It came as a big surprise to a lot of us – smoking is something that helps people doing time stay sane – it’s something to do with all that time you have on your hands.’ He added: ‘As soon as word got round that it wasn’t a joke and that all smoking was banned, even in the exercise yard, a lot of people I know started having second thoughts about committing crimes.

‘It was something they genuinely feared. Not prison itself, but the idea of being forced to give up smoking. Some of my mates have simply given up crime, whether it be stealing cars, shoplifting to order or burglary, as a direct result of the smoking ban.’

A spokeswoman for the prison said that the huge drop in recorded crime could not be ‘wholly attributed’ to the non-smoking prison, but said the non-smoking status of the prison was now a well known fact on the island.

She said: ‘The No-Smoking Premises Regulations 2007 are well known throughout the Island. All smoking prisoners are offered every assistance through our professionally qualified medical team and prescribed nicotine replacement therapy in accordance with clinical guidance.’

Home Affairs Minister Martyn Quayle, said at the opening of the prison: ‘It’s been a very difficult issue to reflect the fact that we are not going to please everybody. Certainly the prison officers have a right to enjoy a no-smoking environment as much as their counterparts in the civil service working outside the prison.

The Department considered a total ban was the right policy to adopt. Chief Inspector Simon Lowe, of the Isle of Man Constabulary, said today: ‘Anything that helps reduce crime is welcomed by the police.’

A Facebook group has even been set up to fight for the right to smoke in the prison and already has 218 members. The group called ‘Allow smokers to smoke in the Isle of Man prison’ states: ‘This group is really more of a petition against the banning of prisoners smoking in the new prison on the Isle of Man.

‘Smoking being banned in the entire prison is an absolute joke and an infringement against human rights by do-gooders.

‘At least let the people who are in (prison) smoke outside. It’s the only prison in Europe that has this rule.’

Scotland's prison population increased by 6%

national statistics. Reported by the BBC.

The figures showed the average daily prison population in the year to March was 7,835, up by 6% on the previous year and 31% over the past 10 years.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said prison would always be the right punishment for those involved in serious crime. But he said simply building more prisons was not the answer.

Scotland’s chief statistician revealed that the majority of the prison population were sentenced prisoners. The most recent average daily figure for prisoners held on remand was 1,678 for the year from April 2008 to the end of March.

This was an increase of 8% over the previous year’s figure of 1,560, indicating an on-going rising trend in the remand population. On 30 June 2008, the crime category with the largest population of sentenced prisoners was non-sexual violent crime (37%), followed by drugs-related crimes (14%).

The 2008-09 average daily female prison population was 413, an 11% increase from 371 in 2007-08. The female prison population has shown a disproportionate increase of 97% over the past 10 years.

The number of prisoners serving sentences of six months or less has decreased, the statistics said.

Speaking during a visit to HMP Inverness, Mr MacAskill said: “Prison, if necessary for a long time, will always be the right punishment for those involved in serious crime and those who are a danger to our communities.

“That is why we are investing £120m each year in our prison estate, including the building of three new prisons.

“But we cannot and will not build even more prisons to fill them with those for whom prison is not the right answer.”

‘Revolving door’

He said short sentences of six months or less did nothing to stop offending behaviour.

“Reconviction statistics published earlier this year show just how many offenders are going inside for a short period of time, coming out to reoffend, and then going back inside,” he added. “We need to close that revolving door of reoffending. And to do that we need to tackle the underlying causes of crime – drink, drugs and deprivation.”

In response to the increase in the prison population, John Lamont, the Conservative spokesman on community safety said:

“Prison numbers will only be properly cut when crime is cut. Prison serves four important functions: to deter criminals, to protect the public, to punish and to rehabilitate. All four matter and we have to have the political will to make prison work.

‘Soft touch’

He said that in the SNP’s Scotland, people have to be very unlucky to end up in jail.

He added: “The prime duty of government is to protect the public. The SNP is guilty of a dereliction of that duty.”

Scottish Labour’s justice spokesman Richard Baker said: “Kenny MacAskill’s soft touch approach is not deterring criminals and his management of the prison estate has been woeful.

“Why was the build of Low Moss prison delayed? Why is he closing Craiginches prison in Aberdeen? Mr MacAskill is looking to weaken the criminal justice system and that is not the right approach for dealing with any category of offender. ”

He added: “We do want to see effective community sentences, and in many instances this will be appropriate for female offenders, but this requires appropriate investment in community sentences in which the public can have confidence.”

Dr Andrew McLellan told [Members of the Scottish Parliament] it was a major factor in overcrowding at Cornton Vale Prison and meant many women were too far away from their families.  The Scottish Prison Service admitted the regime at the prison, near Stirling, had slipped amid population increases and pressure on staff time …

Dr McLellan told its inquiry on female offenders in the justice system it did not seem to be “fair or honest” to make the argument that all women prisoners should be at one site to help them benefit from rehabilitation programmes.  “I do not agree with the policy of the Scottish Prison Service which is to concentrate all women prisoners in one site,” he said.   “That by itself is a significant factor of overcrowding in Cornton Vale.”

Pointing out that women prisoners were, until recently, held in Aberdeen, Inverness and Dumfries, Dr McLellan added “Almost all of the women who were in these local units were there for a very short time and largely were there on remand, for five days or seven days or at the most three weeks, so none of these people in Cornton Vale were ever going to take advantage of the critical mass.  “But the closing of these units increases significantly the overcrowding in Cornton Vale and severely impairs the family contact and family support which women in Aberdeen or Inverness or Dumfries might have had.”

Sue Brookes, head of offender strategy and partnership development with the prison service, agreed more female prisoners should be closer to home.  But she dismissed re-opening the Aberdeen and Inverness female prison facilities, saying many of the women in Cornton Vale had acute physical and mental problems. “The reasons for closing them were not just about access to programmes,” said Ms Brookes – a former governor of Cornton Vale.  “They were because, certainly in my view, some of the medical care that was available was not appropriate and was putting women at risk.”