The figure is as high as 80% among those under 21.
More than half of prisoners re-offend within three years, according to new figures.
Inmates under 21 who were released in 2014 re-offended within three years nearly 80 per cent of the time.
But according to the Central Statistics Office, only one third of those over 50 did so.
Former Portlaoise and Mountjoy Prison governor John Lonergan isn't surprised by the new figures:
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