PROBATION chiefs have denied a new so-called "eye in the sky" satellite tracking system for criminals in Hampshire will ultimately become an alternative to prison.

Speaking at the launch of the new technology in Hampshire, one of only three areas where the equipment is being piloted, chief officer of the regional probation service David Scott said the move towards the hi- tech tracking system was aimed at improving public protection.

"The introduction of the equipment is all about giving the public more confidence that they are being protected from offenders. This will not be a replacement and is not aimed at releasing people from prison early," he said.

Hampshire Probation Service is trailing the device, which involves the offender wearing a wrist or ankle tag along with a transmitter pack, specifically with criminals responsible for a large number of damage, destruction or nuisance crimes along with domestic violence offenders.

During the year-long pilot forty people of Hampshire's most serious prolific and domestic abuse offenders will be identified as suitable to test out the scheme.

The technology that costs an estimated £68 per offender per day works via a signal from the transmitter being picked up by a global satellite that can pinpoint to within five metres where the person is 24 hours a day.

It will be able to tell police and probation officers if the person is straying into an area they are excluded from.

Mr Scott said the system, the first of its kind to be used in Europe, will primarily be used to ensure convicted offenders stick to the terms of their licence on release from prison.

However, he added the tracking system would have the capacity to help detectives determine whether a suspect was in the area of a crime when it was committed.

Southampton police superintendent Terry Stevens said: "Generally speaking anything that helps deter crime can only be a good thing."