Written question asked by Chris Huhne (Liberal Democrat) on Wednesday, 15 July 2009, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 21 July 2009. It was answered by Bridget Prentice (Labour) on Tuesday, 21 July 2009 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Cannabis: Fines

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many fines for cannabis possession remained unpaid (a) six and (b) 12 months after issue in each of the last five years.

Answer: Information on paid, part paid and unpaid fines for offences of possessing cannabis is not collected centrally. Information on the enforcement rate of financial penalties imposed by courts is held but cannot identify the originating offence.It is therefore not possible to establish how many fines remain unpaid over the last five years for cannabis possession.The overall payment rate for all financial penalties in the financial year to July 2009 is 82 per cent.

Secondary information