The Committee is well aware of the huge impact that adult reoffending has on peoples’ lives and wider society. Too many people find themselves the victims of crime and having to deal with both the serious physical and psychological repercussions. In addition, from a purely financial point of view, work recently completed by the Department of Justice (the Department) has estimated the total economic and societal cost of crime in Northern Ireland (NI) for 2021-22 at around £3.4 billion, with the annual cost of reoffending alone standing at £374 million, highlighting why progress is needed in these areas.