THE Home Office is considering a proposal whereby criminals who commit crimes such as burglary, mugging and vandalism could escape prosecution by saying sorry to their victims and signing a special contract in which they promise to go straight.

The idea, proposed by the Association of Chief Police Officers, is intended as a way of breaking the cycle of offending by mainly young offenders. As long as they abide by the terms of their contract for a set number of months, they will escape prison. Instead, at the end of the contract period, they will be given a police caution. That will mean they do not have a criminal record, and so have more chance of finding a job and going straight.

If they breach the contract, they would face conviction for the original crime.

The hope is the system could help young people escape being drawn into a cycle of crime, while at the same time easing overcrowding in prisons. So is it an enlightened alternative to locking people up? Or is it simply another case of going soft on criminals?

Di Keal, 42, mother of three, floods campaigner and former residential social worker

"It depends on the nature of the offence. If it is minor petty stuff like nicking an apple off a market stall and that sort of thing, fair enough. But for more serious offences it will just be seen as a soft option, and that is sending out the wrong message to youngsters. The trouble is the sort of offences that are being committed by very, very young children. I would not want to say that I think young children should be locked up and whipped, but they have got to learn, and I don't think getting them to say sorry and giving them a contract will make them learn. They will just laugh, and do it again in six months' time.

They do need to do something about overcrowding in prisons, but I don't think this is the way at all."

Kildip James, 33, former recruitment consultant now working part time and looking after young son Alex.

"Once you've got a criminal record, maybe through something you did ten years ago when you were young and immature in a moment of stupidness, it can ruin your chances of a career. So maybe people should be given a second chance. It will depend on the severity of the crime. But if it was a first time, maybe they did not really realise the consequences of what they were doing and regretted it immediately. If they apologise to the victims, they will see the harm they have done and be filled with remorse. But it depends on the severity of the crime. Some crimes need more punishment than others."

Updated: 09:48 Tuesday, October 29, 2002