[WillowTheWhisp]

Those in open prisons who go out to work in the community get paid the national minimum wage for work they do

That's from one of your links Billcat.

So, a prisoner who has no daily living expenses gets the same wage as the guy next to him who does the same work but has to pay rent/mortgage, pay council tax and utility bills. He can save all his earnings whilst the co-worker may be struggling to make ends meet. Maybe that co-worker would get to thinking twice about whether crime pays or not. I still think they should be deducted for their keep and the money put into some victim compensation fund - maybe less for the taxpayer to have to contribute to then.