Official figures reveal that more than half of all criminals jailed have at least 15 previous cautions or convictions.
In the 12 months to March, it is said that the 50.1% of defendants that were given immediate custodial sentences for both serious and minor crimes, already had 15 or more sanctions.
It is the first time that the figures have exceeded 50%, since the records began a decade ago. In the previous two years, figures were 49.4% and 46.9%.
The percentage of criminals in 2005, imprisoned for both indictable-only and summary crimes, who already had at least 15 past cautions or convictions were just above a third.
The Ministry of Justice figures also reveal that prisons in England and Wales have more sex offenders than ever before.
