Greens secure commitment to write off toxic council tax debt
Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer MSP has welcomed a Scottish Government agreement to write off toxic debt for thousands of people across Scotland, following a long-running campaign by his party and charities.
The announcement made today includes action to end domestic abuse survivors being forced to pay their abusers’ council tax debts. This is the result of a change in the law delivered by Greer last year and supported by women’s organisations and anti-poverty charities, including Scottish Women’s Aid, Aberlour and Financially Included.
It also includes a commitment to look at reducing the write-off point for council tax arrears from the current 20 years. This issue was also first raised by Greer during the Housing Bill and in questions to the First Minister last year, where he highlighted that the equivalent cut-off point in England is only six years.
Bringing Scotland into line with the English timescale would effectively cancel any Council Tax debts built up before 2020 and break the cycle of poverty faced by many individuals trapped by unpayable debts.
Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer MSP said:
“Abuse survivors should never be forced to pay off their abusers’ debts, and people trapped in decades-long cycles of debt need our help to break that cycle.
“I’m glad that the Scottish Government is making progress on the commitments they made to us last year.
“Scotland’s Council tax debt collection system is far harsher than other parts of the UK. Far too many desperate and vulnerable people are trapped in cycles of unpayable debt for decades, particularly victims of domestic violence.
“Too many people have been saddled with toxic and unfair debts that their abuser often deliberately refused to pay, allowing financial abuse to continue long after they have escaped. Ending this scandal is long overdue.
“I worked with women’s organisations and anti-poverty groups to force this change in the law last year. We now need to see it implemented as soon as possible.
“These toxic debts take money directly from people who are often experiencing poverty and who need to feed their children, heat their homes and build a safer future for them and the people they care about.
“This is an important step towards ending the scandal of toxic and unpayable council tax debt and giving people the chance to get their lives back on track.”