More than half of those released from Irish prisons in 2008 re-offended within three years.

Figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that of the almost 5,500 individuals who were released in 2008, 51% re-offended and many of them within six months.

The figures show that 5,489 individuals were released in 2008 and 2,802 had been convicted for another offence during the next three years.

Of those who re-offended, the majority of 64% did so within the first six months of their official release from custody.

Rates of recidivism are higher for males than females, and the rates decrease with age. In relation to those freed in 2008, 56.8% of re-offenders were aged less than 21.

There was a slight decrease in recidivism on the 2007 levels.

But rises were observed for controlled drug offences, from just under 44% to 49%.