Chamber and committees

Statistics on the number of people that have attended accident and emergency services as a result of a dog attack are not available from data collected centrally by ISD.

Information is available on the number of emergency admissions to hospital that were a result of being bitten or struck by a dog. This is shown in the following table. This will not include attendances to accident and emergency departments that were not followed up by a subsequent emergency admission to hospital.

Number of emergency hospital admissions¹ as a result of being bitten or struck by a dog², year ending 31 March 1999-2012:

Source: SMR01, ISD Scotland

Notes

1. These statistics are derived from data collected on discharges from non-obstetric and non-psychiatric hospitals (SMR01) in Scotland.

2. Admissions as a result of being “bitten or struck by a dog” are defined by ICD10 code W54 – in any secondary position. Injuries related to dogs are coded under the ICD10 code W54 “bitten or struck by dog”. This code was used for the analysis when recorded in any secondary position.

3. Rates are based on National Records of Scotland mid-year population estimates for each of the financial years.

4. Data are based on year of discharge.

5. A patient could have several emergency hospital admissions in a financial year.

Debtor application fees cover the cost of the process involved in the Accountant in Bankruptcy determining an award of bankruptcy applied for through a debtor application. In June 2012, the Scottish Government increased these fees from £100 to £200. This was because the fee only partly covered the cost of the work carried out. The cost of a debtor application had remained at £100 since 2008, despite the unit cost increasing over this period, due to a decline in the number of applications.

The increase, therefore, was in line with the guidance in the Scottish Public Finance Manual, where it states that ‘the standard approach to setting charges for public services (including services supplied by one public sector organisation to another) is full cost recovery’, as it was necessary in order to recover more of the cost of the process. The new fee rate of £200 was still significantly lower than fees for similar services elsewhere in the UK.

The Accountant in Bankruptcy is guided by the Scottish Public Finance Manual, particularly the section on Fees and Charges:http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Government/Finance/spfm/feescharges.

The Accountant in Bankruptcy does not have a set timetable for achieving full cost recovery.

This proposal arose as a result of feedback from stakeholders who, after the consultation on bankruptcy law reform, reported an issue with the current approach, for example, in protected trust deeds where the practice was often to write the period in which assets would vest in the trustee into the body of the trust deed. This resulted in inconsistencies with debtors being treated differently depending on the terms of their trust deed. The outcome of this stakeholder feedback was that the Scottish Government agreed to correct this inconsistency.

Bankruptcy, protected trust deeds (PTDs), and individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) are all insolvency proceedings as defined by Article 2(a) of European Council Regulation (EC) No. 1346/2000 on insolvency proceedings. All three have similar features, insofar as they “entail the partial or total divestment of a debtor”. However, there are also some differences.Bankruptcy (also known as ‘sequestration’, in Scotland) is an insolvency solution available to persons domiciled in England, Wales and Scotland, in which the debtor’s estate vests in a trustee who administers the assets of the bankrupt for the benefit of creditors. Bankruptcy can currently involve contributions from income for a period of three years or more.

A protected trust deed (PTD) is an insolvency solution available only to persons domiciled in Scotland, in which there is a conveyance of a debtor’s assets, to a trustee, for the benefit of his creditors, protected by statute from enforcement by particular creditors. Previously, PTDs persisted for a period of at least three years, however this was amended in the Protected Trust Deed (Scotland) Regulations 2013 (SSI 2013/318) and a PTD can now involve contributions being made from the debtor’s income for a period of four years (as well as the conveyance, to the trustee, of any assets the debtor might acquire during the same four year period).An IVA is an insolvency solution available only to persons domiciled in England and Wales, in which the debtor will make a proposal to his creditors for a composition in satisfaction of his debts or a scheme of arrangement of his affairs. An IVA can involve monthly contributions being made from the debtor’s income for a period of at least five years.

There is no “repayment period” set out in the Bankruptcy and Debt Advice (Scotland) Bill. Section 4 provides for the introduction of the ‘debtor contribution order’. Under section 4 of the Bill, a debtor may be required to pay a contribution either for a period of 48 months or such shorter or longer period as may be determined.

The Scottish Government’s consultation on bankruptcy law reform ran from 24 February to 18 May 2012. A Scottish Government response to the consultation was published on 7 November 2012.

Question 10.38 in the consultation asked, “Should a new payment product be developed for individuals who are assessed as able to make a contribution?”

A summary of all responses to question 10.38 is as follows:

38 respondents said, “Yes”

70 respondents said, “No”

15 respondents gave no answers and 6 respondents made a comment but did not answer either, “Yes” or “No”.

The majority of respondents who chose to answer question 10.38, therefore, indicated that they did not think that a new payment product should be developed and, in accordance with stakeholders’ clearly expressed views, the Scottish Government has not since developed such a product.

The Scottish Government agrees with the Association of Business Recovery Professionals (R3) who, in their response to the consultation, said that, “Current products are available for those who are able to make a contribution.”

Payment product and the duration of the period of the payment of debt collection orders are of course entirely separate issues.

The Scottish Government considers that debt relief order (DROs) and bankruptcy are similar in effect, in that both place restrictions on the debtor and prevent creditors from pursuing debts (in a DRO this is done via a moratorium for a 12 month period). However, there are also some differences as follows:

A debt relief order is a debt solution under the Insolvency Act 1986 available to persons domiciled in England and Wales who meet certain qualifying criteria. DROs are ordered by the official receiver (who is an officer of the court.)

Bankruptcy is an insolvency solution available to persons domiciled in England, Wales and Scotland (where it is also known as, ‘sequestration’), in which the debtor’s estate vests in a trustee who administers the assets of the bankrupt for the benefit of creditors. Both bankruptcy and DROs ordinarily result in the debtor being discharged from the debtor’s debts after a period of one year.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-18116 on 21 November 2013. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.