Public views of appropriate sentencing policy are underpinned by important misconceptions about the nature and extent of crime in Scotland

Committee report

The report says: "There is a pressing need to restore public confidence in the courts and the judiciary - by providing better information."

The study was carried out by NFO System Three Social Research for the Scottish Parliament's justice 1 committee.

It plans to use the findings, along with the outcome of a civic participation event in Glasgow, in a forthcoming inquiry into alternatives to custody.

The main findings of the study were:

• There is a lack of public knowledge about and a lack of public confidence in the way the Scottish courts deal with offenders

• Members of the public know little about the sentencing options

• There is a widespread view that prison costs too much and that savings should be made

• The idea of rehabilitating offenders is viewed positively.

The report said many of those questioned incorrectly believed crime was on the rise and that attacks on women and elderly people were more common.

They grossly over-estimated the rate of violent crime, guessing that it was a factor in more than half of all recorded offences. The actual rate in 2000 was 6%.

There was also a belief that the courts should deliver harsher sentences.

There is concern about re-offending

Almost half of those surveyed thought Scottish courts were too soft, although a quarter believed that sentences were "about right".

More than half of those questioned believed that tougher sentences would stop people re-offending, although almost a third disagreed.

Some people voiced their approval of the idea of cutting off the hands of thieves.

There was a general belief that life in prison was "too soft" on serious offenders.

Drugs were freely available in prison, which meant that jails did not help rehabilitate drug offenders, some said, and most people's knowledge about the system came from the media or dramas.

Six in 10 had little idea of what happened in a courtroom.

Harsher sentencing

Many respondents thought that guilty offenders walked free because of "clever lawyers" or "technicalities".

"Public views of appropriate sentencing policy are underpinned by important misconceptions about the nature and extent of crime in Scotland," said the report.

It predicted that constructive alternatives to imprisonment could be "sold" to the public - despite the calls for harsher sentencing.

It also said there should be a shift towards protecting the public from dangerous predatory offenders, promoting consistency in sentencing and providing cost-effective programmes to support rehabilitation.