§ Andrew BennettTo ask the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs if she will set out for each magistrates court in Greater Manchester(a) the amount of fines levelled by each court in each of the last five years, (b) the amount of fines written off by each court and (c) the percentage of fines collected. [119442]
§ Mr. LeslieMagistrates Courts Committees (MCCs) have a responsibility for the collection of a range of debts imposed by the magistrates courts and the Crown 637W court. Debt collected includes not only fines but also fees, compensation, confiscation orders, legal aid contributions and some maintenance orders. It is not possible to separate out only fines from the total.
Prior to 1999, the Magistrates Courts Committees were not asked as part of their data collection to provide full information on the amounts imposed or paid. The national data for the period 1996–98 for amounts 'written off' was collected only for the last quarter of each calendar year.
The figures for the magistrates courts areas within Greater Manchester are contained in the table, including that for the first three quarters in 2002–03, which is currently the latest data published.
638W
Greater Manchester Magistrates Courts Committee1 Imposed (£) Percentage paid Amount written off (£) Percentage written off April 1999 to March 2000 Trafford 4,728,186 24 425,537 9 Tameside 1,861,182 57 241,934 13 Stockport 2,227,346 49 2— 2— Oldham 1,106,743 101 630,844 57 North and West Manchester (includes Rochdale, Wigan, Leigh and Bury) 10,727,563 60 2,467,339 23 Manchester 6,035,529 49 2,172,790 36 April 2000 to March 2001 Trafford 3,951,052 33 1,382,868 35 Tameside 1,776,096 54 390,741 22 Stockport 1,558,011 89 545,304 35 Oldham 1,063,770 114 531,885 50 North and West Manchester (includes Rochdale, Wigan, Leigh and Bury) 9,921,380 63 2,976,414 30 Manchester 6,700,253 52 2,345,089 35 April 20013 to March 2002 Trafford 4,302,658 28 258,159 6 Tameside 1,334,217 71 400,265 30 Stockport 1,381,183 92 414,355 30 Oldham 1,028,870 106 473,280 46 Salford 931,028 123 484,135 52 Bolton 1,448,566 97 260,742 18 Wigan (includes Bury, Leigh and Rochdale) 6,329,356 54 1,329,165 21 Manchester 6,278,014 52 2,511,206 40 April 2002 to December 20024 Trafford 2,401,929 40 1,925,967 580 Tameside 894,495 74 271,097 30 Stockport 1,178,904 83 311,214 26 Oldham 866,642 90 235,192 27 Salford 906,237 93 292,542 32 Bolton 1,331,538 81 277,014 21 Wigan (includes Bury, Leigh and Rochdale 3,417,731 72 918,541 27 Manchester 5,973.128 49 2,776,921 46 1 Information regarding debt is calculated over a rolling year and the percentages paid and written off in each area will also include amounts that were imposed in previous years. 2 Data not available. 3 Following the amalgamation in April 2001 of 73 MCCs into 42 there was a change of areas making up Greater Manchester Magistrates Court Committee. 4 Only three quarters data are currently available for the 2002–03 financial year. 5 During 2002, as part of on-going performance management, Trafford magistrates court have been running an initiative to bring to a conclusion old accounts by writing off impositions held on the system where defendants cannot be traced. When these defendants reappear the debt is then written back for collection purposes.
Greater Manchester Magistrates Courts Committee1 Imposed in Quarter4 (£) Amount written off in Quarter 4 (£) Percentage written off October to December 1998 Traiford 670.595 43,342 6 Tameside 547.542 64,073 12 Stockport 447,094 56,208 14 Oldham 486.091 70,328 14 North and West Greater Manchester (includes Bolton, Bury, Wigan, City of Salford, Rochdale, Middleston andHeywood) 2,957,003 649,753 22 Manchester 1.782,543 701,137 39 1Information regarding debt is calculated over a rolling year and the percentages paid and written off in each area will also include amounts that were imposed in previous years.