Fiscal framework outturn report: 2023

5. Fines, Forfeitures, and Fixed Penalties

52. This section contains the latest outturn, forecasts and reconciliations available for Fines, Forfeitures, and Fixed Penalties (FFFPs).

53. As with the fully devolved taxes and income tax, there is a corresponding deduction to Scotland’s Block Grant by way of a BGA. This is initially calculated based on forecast growth of equivalent UK Government revenues retained by the Ministry of Justice.

54. Revenue from FFFPs is paid into the Scottish Consolidated Fund after being collected by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and other bodies. No revenue reconciliation takes place, as the Scottish Government deals with variations between forecast and receipts through in-year budget management.

55. Unlike the fully devolved taxes, there is only one reconciliation to the BGA. Outturn data is normally available three months after the end of the financial year to which the original BGA relates, and the reconciliation is applied to the Block Grant for the financial year thereafter (i.e. two years after the Budget was set).

56. This report uses provisional 2022-23 Scottish revenue outturn data. The final revenue data will be published as part of Scottish Government’s Consolidated Accounts. The UK Government revenues used to calculate the BGA for FFFPs are published in the HM Courts & Tribunals Service Trust Statement.

57. Table 11 shows the net effect on the Scottish Budget for 2022-23 FFFP revenue, comparing outturn data with forecasts for the same. It also shows that the provisional BGA reconciliation required, applying to the 2024-25 Scottish Budget is positive £2.9 million.

58. Table 12 compares forecasts of the net effect on the Budget for FFFP in 2023-24. When outturn data for the BGA becomes available in the next financial year, a reconciliation will be applied to the 2025-26 Budget, meaning that these figures are indicative only.

59. As part of the Fiscal Framework review 2023^[7], both governments jointly agreed to remove the ongoing indexation of the baseline deduction, and therefore removed the requirement for the corresponding UK Government receipts each year. These changes are reflected in the updated Fiscal Framework agreement, published in August 2023.

60. This adjustment to the original agreement, is set out in Annex C – Part 2: indexation methodologies – with the removal of “Corresponding UK Government revenues” under ‘fines and penalties' (from courts and tribunals):

Revenue source:

• Income tax

Corresponding UK government receipts:

• Non-savings, non-divided income tax receipts

Revenue source:

• Assigned VAT

Corresponding UK government receipts:

• VAT receipts from the first 10p of the standard VAT rate and the first 2.5p of the reduced VAT rate

Revenue source:

• Air passenger duty, aggregates levy, stamp duty land tax and landfill tax

Corresponding UK government receipts:

• Corresponding UK government receipts for each of the fully devolved taxes

Revenue source:

• Fines and penalties (from courts and tribunals) (redacted)

Corresponding UK government receipts:

• Corresponding UK government revenues (redacted)