Scrap imprisonment for non-payment of council tax, say charity

England should follow Scotland and Wales in scrapping the sanction of imprisonment for non-payment of council tax, a charity has urged after latest figures from the Ministry of Justice revealed 19 people received suspended sentences last year.

Last month Havant resident Matthew Simpson was sent to prison for 70 days for failing to pay more than £2,200 of council tax between April 2013 and March 2016.

Writing for The MJ this week, council tax expert at the StepChange debt charity, Emily Whitford, argued the option of imprisoning people for being in debt ‘belongs in the past’.

Read the full article on The MJ