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Imprisionment Of Tv Licence Fine Defaulters

EDM number 287 in 1995-96, proposed by Alex Carlile on 16/01/1996.

That this House notes the continuing prosecutons for TV licence evasion which lead to imprisonment for fine default; notes that failing to pay the TV licence fee is the only type of payment, in the normal range of family consumption, for which a householder can be criminally prosecuted and imprisoned; notes that legal aid is not available for those prosecuted; notes that people prosecuted for TV licence evasion tend to be disproportionately poor, female, unemployed and single-parent with 278 women being imprisoned in 1993, over 7.5 per cent. of the total number of women imprisoned in 1993; notes that despite trials there is still not a cash based method of instalment credit payment for TV licences; believes that imprisonment resulting from the non-payment of fines imposed for the non-payment of a TV licence is an inefficient, unusually severe and counter-productive means of dealing with non-payment; believes that courts should first try to recover fines as a civil debt, as in Scotland, where imprisonment for TV licence-generated fine default is rare while purchasing rates of TV licences are similar to England and Wales; and calls on the Government as a matter of priority to either ensure that all possible means of civil debt recovery are pursued by the courts or to amend the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 to decriminalise the offence.

This motion has been signed by a total of 49 MPs.

MPDateConstituencyPartyType
Alex Carlile16/01/1996MontgomeryProposed
Archy Kirkwood16/01/1996Roxburgh & BerwickshireSigned
Liz Lynne16/01/1996RochdaleSigned
Robert Maclennan16/01/1996Caithness and SutherlandSigned
Lynne Jones17/01/1996Birmingham, Selly OakSigned
Jeremy Corbyn17/01/1996Islington NorthSigned
Andrew Faulds17/01/1996Warley EastSigned
Norman Godman17/01/1996Greenock and Port GlasgowSigned
Paddy Tipping17/01/1996SherwoodSigned
Bryan Davies18/01/1996Oldham Central and RoytonSigned
Jim Wallace18/01/1996Orkney & ShetlandSigned
Neil Gerrard18/01/1996WalthamstowSigned
Don Foster18/01/1996BathSigned
Lawrence Cunliffe18/01/1996LeighSigned
David Chidgey18/01/1996EastleighSigned
Elfyn Llwyd18/01/1996Meirionnydd Nant ConwySigned
Alan Simpson18/01/1996Nottingham SouthSigned
Ray Michie19/01/1996Argyll & ButeSigned
Roland Boyes19/01/1996Houghton and WashingtonSigned
Ken Livingstone22/01/1996Brent EastSigned
Dafydd Wigley22/01/1996CaernarfonSigned
Michael Clapham23/01/1996Barnsley West & PenistoneSigned
Harry Barnes23/01/1996North East DerbyshireSigned
Dennis Turner23/01/1996Wolverhampton South EastSigned
Eddie Loyden24/01/1996Liverpool, GarstonSigned
Mildred Gordon24/01/1996Bow and PoplarSigned
Llin Golding24/01/1996Newcastle-under-LymeSigned
Edward O'Hara24/01/1996Knowsley SouthSigned
Michael Connarty24/01/1996Falkirk EastSigned
Kim Howells25/01/1996PontypriddSigned
Nigel Jones25/01/1996CheltenhamSigned
Ian McCartney25/01/1996MakerfieldSigned
John Evans25/01/1996St Helens NorthSigned
Audrey Wise25/01/1996PrestonSigned
Colin Pickthall29/01/1996West LancashireSigned
David Rendel29/01/1996NewburySigned
Nick Ainger29/01/1996PembrokeSigned
Matthew Taylor29/01/1996TruroSigned
James Callaghan30/01/1996Heywood & MiddletonSigned
Alan Beith30/01/1996Berwick-upon-TweedSigned
Menzies Campbell30/01/1996Fife North EastSigned
Diana Maddock31/01/1996ChristchurchSigned
Chris Davies31/01/1996Littleborough and SaddleworthSigned
Nick Harvey01/02/1996North DevonSigned
Charles Kennedy06/02/1996Ross and Cromarty and SkyeSigned
Robert Wareing06/02/1996Liverpool, West DerbySigned
Greg Pope15/02/1996HyndburnSigned
Austin Mitchell01/07/1996Great GrimsbySigned
Tony Lloyd12/07/1996StretfordSigned

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