The practice benefits the offender by ensuring him that he will not be prosecuted for the admission of additional offenses (only property crimes), and it benefits the police by improving their image of effectiveness. The Merseyside police have also manipulated the practice to bolster an argument that a reduced police overtime budget undermines clearance rates. In response to a budget cutback, the police reduced the time spent in visiting prisons to gain admissions from inmates about additional crimes. This was reflected in a significantly lower clearance rate. These statistics, however, were not a true indication of reduced police effectiveness, since clearance rates from inmate admissions do not get more criminals off the streets nor benefit the victims of those crimes for which no prosecution is brought. The police could better spend their time investigating recently committed crimes which have yet to be cleared. 3 tables and 20 references.