Prisoners serving a life sentence, with the exception of terrorists, would be able to leave prison early through a parole system under recommendations unveiled yesterday.

The Restorative Justice Task Force recommended that the judiciary would in their judgment stipulate the minimum number of years an offender sentenced for 20 years or more had to serve before being considered for parole.

As a general rule, the parole eligibility date would be calculated at half the sentence, with offenders having to apply six months beforehand.

Recommendations published by the task force said that even relapsers would be eligible for parole although they would be bound with more rigorous conditions and requirements than other offenders.

Even foreigners would be eligible for early release, the task force recommended. It expressed its belief that all inmates, except terrorists, should be eligible for parole, with the system being phased in gradually.

On the other hand, those who had been jailed for up to a year would not qualify for parole and would continue to benefit from remission, which is granted to prisoners on grounds of good conduct.

The onus of establishing the level of risk and danger an offender posed would lie with the Parole Board.

The task force noted that parole should be considered as a concession and not a right and it would be up to the Parole Board to decide on a case by case basis.

Those who breached the conditions of parole would risk having their licence revoked and, for major breaches, the offender would be returned to prison immediately.

Electronic tagging is also being considered as an alternative to incarceration in certain cases while a system of regular random urine testing for both inmates and staff should be introduced immediately.

Among its 44 recommendations, the task force is suggesting a system to reduce interaction between inmates who were motivated to change their behaviour and those who were not.

Unmotivated offenders would be kept in a division with limited privileges while those eager to change their behaviour would move to a different division with increased privileges.

The task force is recommending the creation of an induction zone within the prison where fresh inmates were housed until they are evaluated by the Offenders Assessment Board.

It is also proposing the appointment of a fully-fledged probation officer, whose role would be to help the prisoner to be effectively reintegrated into society. A plan would start being drawn up as soon as the person is admitted to the Corradino Correctional Facility.

The setting up of a unit to offer psychological services within the prison is another proposal. This would be made up of forensic psychologists who would ensure the general well-being of the offender and aimed at reducing criminal behaviour.

The rudimentary educational and vocational structure within the prison has to be strengthened, according to the task force, and the new unit would cater for this.

A training centre at the correctional facility is being proposed. This would cater for specific classes of inmates who could not have prison leave, including those awaiting judgment. The centre could be run either by the Employment and Training Corporation or an NGO.

Prison operations would be reviewed to establish which human and infrastructural resources are needed to support the concept of restorative justice and the introduction of the parole system.

Inmates will be involved in drawing up a personalised and reintegration programme as the task force feels there is no one-size-fits-all approach.

The report recommends setting up in-house programmes to help reform the offender's character and prepare him for future employment.

However, supervision and the setting up such programmes should not be within the remit of the Parole Board, as recommended by the White Paper. Instead, these should be managed by a care and reintegration manager. The setting up of a victims' support group is being proposed. This would guide them through compensation proceedings and inform them when the person who committed a crime against them is given parole.

Appointing a victim service unit officer, who would explain the rights of the victim and his role during court proceedings, is another suggestion. The officer would help the victim avoid being victimised again and refer those who need further assistance to existing NGOs offering support services.