Imprisonment for debt: The courts and the poll tax

Abstract

The Local Government Finance Act 1988 imposed the community charge, a ‘poll tax’ on individuals, not on property. Everyone had to pay the same amount, whether rich or poor. The legislation provided for imprisonment for up to three months in cases of non-payment of the tax. Poll tax debtors have been sent to prison in considerable numbers: they are frequently from the poorest sector of the population (on state benefits or without any source of income) and are often either disabled or ill. The Magistrates' Association published guidelines for poll tax committal in March 1995. This article discusses the background to the issuing of the guidelines and looks at them critically. The Appendix gives case histories of recent committals for poll tax default.

Key Words:

• poll tax
• community charge
• imprisonment
• magistrates
• sentencing