A new report compiled for the Council of Europe states that British taxpayers are shelling out more money to run their prison system than other countries in western Europe, according to U.K.'s The Telegraph.
The average European cost per day per prisoner in 2012 was £72 (€97), while taxpayers in England and Wales paid £15 higher - about £87 (€117).
At current exchange rates, according to the report, Spain spent £39 (€53), Portugal £30 (€40), France £72 (€97) and Austria £79 (€107). Germany's spending came in just below England and Wales' numbers.
To the east, Croatia spent £5.50 (€7.50) a day, Lithuania £9 (€12.50) and Poland £14 (€19). Greece spent just £2.36 (€3.2) per day and Russia bottomed out at £1.60 (€2.17).
The study found England and Wales don't just spend more per prisoner per day - the countries have more prisoners than the European average. In fact, three times as many life-sentences prisoners, according to The Telegraph.
"England traditionally has very harsh penalties compared to its neighbors, which often apply softer sentences," said Marcelo Aebi, professor at University of Lausanne and lead author, according to The Telegraph."In England and Wales it is a very punitive system."
England also has the oldest prison population, with an average age of 80.
Despite the numbers, England and Wales do not have an issue with overcrowding. Prison density "per 100 places" was 95.5 (meaning, of 100 vacancies, less than 96 were filled) compared to countries like Italy, where figures are 148 per 100 places.
