Motorists face fines of £15 towards helping victims of domestic and sexual violence

drc

From The Times;

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article6973689.ece#comment-have-your-say

Drivers who are found guilty of minor motoring offences face a £15 surcharge to help victims of domestic violence and other violent crime.
Details of the new tax were slipped out before Christmas in a Parliamentary answer. The “victims’ surcharge” will be added to fixed penalty tickets given out by police.
Anyone who breaks parking regulations, contravenes a stop sign or speeds will be forced to pay the penalty. It could also be levied when a vehicle has dirty windows. Ministers say that they want to extend the payment to all types of fixed penalties. At present, only errant motorists who are fined in court for more serious offences are liable to pay the surcharge.
In the Parliamentary reply, Claire Ward, the Justice Minister, said: “It is government policy that, where possible, offenders should contribute to victims’ services as part of their reparation. Provisions were therefore included in the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 providing for a surcharge to be payable on criminal convictions, penalty notices for disorder and on fixed penalty notices for road traffic offences where the offences are persistent and serious.
“The victim surcharge has been applied initially only to fines imposed in magistrates and Crown Courts at a rate of £15. We intend to add the surcharge to other disposals as soon as it becomes feasible.
“Proceeds raised from the surcharge provide a ring-fenced source of funding for a wide variety of organisations providing non-financial support to victims and witnesses of crime.”
Under the new regime, the minimum fine of £60 for speeding or not wearing a seat belt would rise to £75. And a “penalty notice for disorder” for drunkeness, criminal damage and shoplifting would increase from £80 to £95. Many motoring offences would attract the new levy. These include having a tyre with insufficient tread and having windscreen wipers which fail to conform to regulations.
Matthew Elliott, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “If the Treasury wants to raise money from the courts, it should be more honest and call this surcharge a ‘justice tax’. By calling it a ‘victims’ surcharge’ and applying it to minor motoring offences and parking tickets where there are clearly no victims, the Government is making a mockery of the tax system. This is clearly another stealth tax designed to plug Britain’s huge debt.”
The victims’ surcharge was introduced in April 2007. At the time, the Magistrates’ Association expressed its unhappiness with the measure. It said: “We are against offenders being taxed by stealth and we are against the idea that any individual without a victim should have to pay it.”
Last year more than three million drivers incurred fixed penalties for exceeding the speed limit.
Between April 2008 and January 2009 the surcharge raised more than £6.6 million.
Following the report in the Daily Mail, last night a spokesman for the Ministry of Justice said: “The MoJ spends over £360 million a year supporting and compensating victims. It is right that offenders should contribute towards these services.”

wymondham

Begs the question ... why??? So by this all motorists fined for minor offenses are indirectly assumed to be guilty also of domestic/sexual violence as they are also being fined for this as well?

What a bizzare piece of legislation, and smacks of the government being disconnected from reality. Why not just fund this from legitimate sources such as general taxation??

nearlynew

wymondham wrote: »

Begs the question ... why??? So by this all motorists fined for minor offenses are indirectly assumed to be guilty also of domestic/sexual violence as they are also being fined for this as well?

What a bizzare piece of legislation, and smacks of the government being disconnected from reality. Why not just fund this from legitimate sources such as general taxation??

Because they are liars and they are thieves.

..... and they will not stop until every aspect of your daily life is under their control.


Those who think "if you do nothing wrong you have nothing to fear" are in for a nasty shock in the coming years.

1984ReturnsForReal_2

nearlynew wrote: »

Those who think "if you do nothing wrong you have nothing to fear" are in for a nasty shock in the coming years.

Hence my user name.

leveller2911

More Yoghurt knitting lefty crap.

Yet again this Government introduce more taxation aimed at the everyday man/woman.Surely compensation given to victims should come from the criminals.
If I replace some rotten horrible looking windows to a clients home they don't ask the neighbour to contribute towards the cost because the area "Looks so much nicer"..!!!!!!

PasturesNew

Paying £15 would be enough to make you want to punch somebody and then shove something up their 4rse wouldn't it.

tomterm8

wymondham wrote: »

Begs the question ... why???

Because the country is broke, so they are squeezing indirect taxation as hard as they can. They are also cutting back on nonessentials such as universitys, canal repairs, and public monument repairs. By the end of the year, whatever party is in power, we will have VAT of 20%, higher national insurance, higher road and car tax, higher duty, and worse roads. Welcome to austerity, population : Britain.

nearlynew

tom - your signiture basically means "debt is not wealth"

I like it.

kaya

coz the governbent have given billions of your money to the bankers to ensure that they and there families have a good future so now they need to try and make up the shortfall

nearlynew

kaya wrote: »

coz the governbent have given billions of your money to the bankers to ensure that they and there families have a good future so now they need to try and make up the shortfall

Spot on.

The recent rises in the stock market have nothing to do with improving conditions. It is a result of the liars and thieves gambling your future taxes on one last roll of the dice.

The game is up.
And we will soon be paying the price of this corruption and greed.

It will mean higher taxes, higher inflation and lower living standards.

leveller2911

Give it 6 months and they'll get their grubby little hands on all of the lottery money to prop up the debt re-payments......:rolleyes: