ROME, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- The cabinet of Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni approved three decrees on Thursday which will implement prison reform.
The bills have already been approved by parliament.
"Our objective is for the prison system to reduce the rate of repeat offenders," Gentiloni told a press conference after what was the last cabinet meeting of his administration ahead of a national election on March 4.
The measures include investments of 36 billion euros (44.4 billion U.S. dollars), which Gentiloni called "a very important contribution to our economy", according to ANSA news agency.
As well, the measures will enact new contracts for prison staff "after a nine to 10-year freeze", Gentiloni said.
"After waiting nine to 10 years, our public employees, the security sector and local bodies have a new labor contract," the outgoing center-left prime minister said. "This is a fact of great relevance for many families," ANSA cited him as saying.
In recent years, Italy has invested a great deal in alternative sentencing for non-violent crimes, such as house arrest, in a bid to reduce overcrowding in prisons.
The current prison system law was approved in 1975.