Robbers given lower fines than motorists caught speeding

Published 07th Apr 2010

Robbers are walking away from court with lower fines than those given to motorists caught speeding or parking without a ticket.

In one year, the average fine handed to muggers by magistrates was only £47.

A minor parking infringement earns a £120 ticket in London, or £70 outside the capital. Speeding carries a £60 penalty.
Robber

Robbers are getting average fines of £47, while speeding carries a penalty of £60

Opposition MPs said it was a shocking example of how criminals responsible for even serious crimes were being let-off with 'soft punishments'.

Magistrates are bound by rules which link the level of court fines with the criminal's ability to pay.

This means offenders with no income except for state benefits, and who often have severe addictions to drink or drugs, receive lower fines.

Critics often point to the relatively lenient fines given to many who have carried out serious crimes, while those with steady incomes who commit minor offences are heavily penalised.

Last week, Joan Higgins, 66, was fined £1,000, and placed under curfew after she unwittingly sold a goldfish to a 14-year-old boy taking part in a trading standards 'sting'.

Tory justice spokesman Dominic Grieve said: 'Ministers have tried to bully magistrates to give fewer jail and community sentences, but it is no wonder magistrates have little confidence in fines when ministers haven't bothered to uprate fine levels in all the time they've been in power.

'As a result, fines for serious offences like robbery and criminal damage are cheaper than some parking tickets.

'No wonder public confidence in the justice system has been undermined.'

The level of fines handed down by the courts was revealed by the Ministry of Justice.

The figures show that in 2007 magistrates charged robbers - widely considered among the more serious offenders - an average of only £47.

In 2008, the figure stood at £75 - but this was still, in real terms, a third lower than when Labour came to power in 1997.

The Conservatives blamed the failure of the Government to uprate the framework used for calculating the level of fines.

This rulebook has not been changed to take account of inflation since 1992 - meaning statutory fine levels have effectively been halved.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: 'Fines given in
individual cases are a matter for the independent judiciary, as they have the full facts of the case in front of them.

'The law requires that fines are set in line with the seriousness of the offence and the offenders' ability to pay.'

John Thornhill, chairman of the Magistrates' Association, said the low level of fines was because many offenders were on benefits or low income.

Offenders could also get up to a 30 per cent reduction in the level of fine for an early guilty plea, he added.

Source: ' 'Daily Mail' '

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