A fiscal fine (formally a fixed penalty conditional offer) is a form of deferred prosecution agreement in Scotland issued by a

procurator fiscal A procurator fiscal (pl. ''procurators fiscal''), sometimes called PF or fiscal (), is a public prosecutor in Scotland, who has the power to impose fiscal fines. They investigate all sudden and suspicious deaths in Scotland (similar to a corone ...

for certain

summary offence A summary offence or petty offence is a violation in some common law jurisdictions that can be proceeded against summarily, without the right to a jury trial and/or indictment (required for an indictable offence). Canada In Canada, summary offe ...

s as an alternative to prosecution. Alternatives to prosecution are called direct measures in Scotland. Fiscal fines can vary between £50 and £500, but a compensation offer may be issued either separately or additionally with similar effect but with payment going to the victim of crime: these can be of any amount not exceeding £5,000. Whilst not being recorded as a conviction or formal admission of guilt, the payment of a fiscal fine can be revealed in certain circumstances, including a requirement by the

General Medical Council The General Medical Council (GMC) is a public body that maintains the official register of physician, medical practitioners within the United Kingdom. Its chief responsibility is to "protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the pu ...

for disclosure. The power to issue fiscal fines is conferred by section 302 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 as amended by section 50 of the Criminal Proceedings etc. (Reform) (Scotland) Act 2007.

Background

Fiscal fines were introduced in Scotland by section 56 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 1987, following recommendations made by the Stewart Committee in ''Keeping Offenders Out of Court: Further Alternatives to Prosecution'' (published in 1982). Under the 1987 Act the fiscal fine was fixed at £25, which was changed by the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 to four levels of £25, £50, £75 and £100, and the maximum fine was increased following the McInnes Report from

Sheriff Principal In Scotland a sheriff principal (''pl''. sheriffs principal) () is a judge in charge of a sheriffdom with judicial, quasi-judicial, and administrative responsibilities. Sheriffs principal have been part of the judiciary of Scotland since the ...

John McInnes. The maximum fine was subsequently increased to £300 by section 50 of the Criminal Proceedings etc. (Reform) (Scotland) Act 2007. The 2007 Act also modified the system from one where the offender had to accept a fiscal fine as an alternative fine, to one in which the offender was determined to have accepted fine if they did not object (an "opt-out" system.) The move to an opt-out system was another recommendation of the McInnes report.

Criticism

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact (newspaper), compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until ...

'' newspaper reported in 2008 that fiscal fines were being used to deal with violent and serious crimes, contrary to previous assurances from the Crown Office The Inspectorate of Prosecution examined the use of fiscal fines in 2009 and found that most fiscal fines for

assault In the terminology of law, an assault is the act of causing physical harm or consent, unwanted physical contact to another person, or, in some legal definitions, the threat or attempt to do so. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may ...

were dealt with appropriately. The Crown Office responded by rejecting any claims that some sex offenders were offered fiscal fines instead of facing prosecution. In the four years leading up to September 2013 showed that 189,256 fiscal fines had seen warning letters issued for non-payment. The enforcement regime was also criticised in 2017 in the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( ; ) is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. It is located in the Holyrood, Edinburgh, Holyrood area of Edinburgh, and is frequently referred to by the metonym 'Holyrood'. ...

when figures revealed 45% of fiscal fines issued remained unpaid.

References

{{CriminalJusticeScotland Scottish criminal law