A Government minister has defended the controversial high visibility jackets which offenders have to wear while doing community work as part of their punishment.

Justice Minister Shahid Malik visited Rochester on Tuesday to see justice - and the jackets - in action.

The Minister met offenders as they cleared rubbish and debris from the alleyways next to Rochester Cemetery, in Maidstone Road, as part of their punishment from the courts.

Offenders sentenced to unpaid work now have to wear bright orange jackets, which bear the slogan Community Payback, to highlight what they are doing for their punishment.

It's part of a government initiative aimed at improving public confidence in the justice system,

Mr Malik said: "Many people hear about Community Punishments and they think they are a soft touch and that criminals get away with doing nothing and that obviously damages the confidence people have in the Criminal Justice System.

"The reality is that Community Payback schemes like the in Kent are achieving more than a short spell in prison in stopping re-offending.

"The public and the taxpayer have an absolute right to know what offenders are doing to payback the community for their crimes. These high visibility jackets with the distinctive logo ‘community payback’ are one way in which the Government is making this payback more visible and ensuring that justice is being seen as well as being done.

"This is not about humiliation — it’s about ensuring the public can see justice being done. It’s about letting the public know there are consequences for committing crime, that Community Payback is not a soft option and that they can see how it can benefit their local area.

"The more confidence the public have in the system, the more we can ask the public to play their part — by reporting crime, giving evidence in court and supporting victims in their community."

Sarah Billiald, Kent Probation Chief Officer, said: "Kent Probation enforces the wearing of vests at all of its Community Payback sites because it is important that justice is seen to be done.

"Offenders carrying out Community Payback in Kent have been wearing high visibility vests for the past three years and the response from local communities has, on the whole, been very positive."

The Medway Messenger exclusively revealed on Friday that 20 offenders working on two projects in Medway are currently exempt from wearing their hi-visibility jackets after they were threatened and abused by members of the public while wearing the jackets.

The decision is due to to be reviewed in the next couple of weeks.