Current status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 1 October 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been declared bankrupt in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.
The Accountant in Bankruptcy maintains the Register of Insolvencies in Scotland and publishes statistics on personal insolvencies in Scotland by financial year, in their annual report.
Details of the numbers of bankruptcies are not available by local authority area, but are recorded by Sheriffdoms as all petitions for bankruptcy, prior to 1 April 2008, were considered by the Scottish Courts.
Since 1 April 2008, whilst creditor petitions are still considered by the sheriff, the Accountant in Bankruptcy has responsibility for debtor applications and records all awards of bankruptcy by Sherrifdom area.
The following table provides the number of bankruptcies for the financial years 2006-07 and 2007-08, and for the first quarter of 2008-09 (1 April to 30 June). There has been a significant increase in the number of people becoming bankrupt in Scotland in the first quarter of this financial year compared to previous years. This increase is due to the bankruptcy reforms contained in the Bankruptcy and Diligence etc. (Scotland) Act 2007.
Further information including the annual reports is available on the Accountant in Bankruptcy''s website at www.aib.gov.uk.
Number of Awards of Bankruptcy by Sheriffdom and Sheriff Court
| Sheriffdom (Sheriff Court) | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | April to June 2008 |
| Tayside, Central and Fife |
|
|
|
| Awarded by the Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) |
|
| 540 |
| Alloa | 69 | 65 | 4 |
| Arbroath | 54 | 51 | 4 |
| Cupar | 65 | 100 | 6 |
| Dundee | 429 | 453 | 105 |
| Dunfermline | 191 | 259 | 22 |
| Falkirk | 231 | 202 | 20 |
| Forfar | 45 | 38 | 4 |
| Kirkcaldy | 247 | 217 | 17 |
| Perth | 170 | 185 | 11 |
| Stirling | 75 | 69 | 8 |
| Total awards for Sheriffdom | 1,576 | 1,639 | 741 |
| South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway |
|
|
|
| Awarded by AiB |
|
| 428 |
| Airdrie | 313 | 274 | 30 |
| Ayr | 147 | 158 | 10 |
| Dumfries | 85 | 110 | 4 |
| Hamilton | 408 | 421 | 57 |
| Kirkcudbright | 34 | 35 | 1 |
| Lanark | 64 | 59 | 7 |
| Stranraer | 39 | 35 | 0 |
| Total awards for Sheriffdom | 1090 | 1092 | 537 |
|
|
|
|
|
| North Strathclyde |
|
|
|
| Awarded by AiB |
|
| 231 |
| Campbeltown | 22 | 19 | 2 |
| Dumbarton | 176 | 186 | 10 |
| Dunoon | 22 | 27 | 7 |
| Greenock | 82 | 90 | 8 |
| Kilmarnock | 247 | 243 | 30 |
| Oban | 22 | 18 | 4 |
| Paisley | 162 | 281 | 25 |
| Rothesay | 7 | 10 | 1 |
| Total awards for Sheriffdom | 740 | 874 | 318 |
| Grampian, Highland and Islands |
|
|
|
| Awarded by AiB | 252 | 247 | 364 |
| Aberdeen | 16 | 22 | 31 |
| Banff | 32 | 23 | 4 |
| Dingwall | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| Dornoch | 106 | 98 | 0 |
| Elgin | 28 | 23 | 5 |
| Fort William | 92 | 86 | 0 |
| Inverness | 20 | 13 | 16 |
| Kirkwall | 12 | 5 | 1 |
| Lerwick | 4 | 10 | 2 |
| Lochmaddy | 76 | 57 | 0 |
| Peterhead | 22 | 14 | 15 |
| Portree | 36 | 39 | 0 |
| Stonehaven | 18 | 21 | 2 |
| Stornoway | 22 | 12 | 2 |
| Tain | 14 | 10 | 3 |
| Wick |
|
| 0 |
| Total awards for Sheriffdom | 753 | 686 | 445 |
| Lothian and Borders |
|
|
|
| Awarded by AiB |
|
| 329 |
| Duns | 19 | 21 | 1 |
| Edinburgh | 467 | 533 | 56 |
| Haddington | 117 | 136 | 36 |
| Jedburgh | 27 | 23 | 0 |
| Linlithgow | 184 | 163 | 26 |
| Peebles | 18 | 9 | 3 |
| Selkirk | 34 | 35 | 1 |
| Total awards for Sheriffdom | 866 | 920 | 452 |
| Glasgow and Strathkelvin |
|
|
|
| Awarded by AiB |
|
| 276 |
| Glasgow | 860 | 947 | 84 |
| Total awards for Sheriffdom | 860 | 947 | 360 |
| Total Awards for Scotland | 5,885 | 6,158 | 2,853 |
Source: Accountant in Bankruptcy.