Question reference: S6W-16371
- Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 30 March 2023
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Current status: Answered by Angela Constance on 27 April 2023
Question
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it has taken several years for the Victims Surcharge Fund to raise over £1 million, in light of the Scottish National Party's 2016 manifesto having stated that the fund "will provide more than a million pounds a year of funding for practical help for victims of crime".
Answer
The amount raised by the victim surcharge is entirely dependent on the number and value of fines imposed by the courts. Only individuals or organisations who have been cautioned after the Victim Surcharge (Scotland) Regulations 2019 came into force on 25 November 2019 are affected. Such cases take time to progress through the court, and the pandemic also impacted on court capacity and therefore court disposals including fines.
An estimate that £800,000 per year could be collected in the fund after four or five years, based on collection rates at that time, was shared with the Justice Committee in October 2019.