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The estimated cost of developing the Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS) case management system to meet the immediate demands of changes to regulations is £32,000.

This figure also provides for an assessment on the future suitability of the DAS IT system which, in technology terms, is aging. This work would be required irrespective of any changes to DAS.

Based on 3,000 DAS applications per annum, the estimated costs to operate the DAS scheme will be around £500,000 per annum. That figure is based on total cost and includes all support costs, a proportion of accommodation, management, governance and control etc.

The Accountant in Bankruptcy publishes details of staff numbers and costs annually in their annual report which is available on their website at www.aib.gov.uk.

The low income, low asset (LILA) route into bankruptcy came into force on 1 April 2008, the same date from which debtor applications for bankruptcy were made directly to the Accountant in Bankruptcy rather than to the courts as previously.

LILA is an additional route into the bankruptcy process, not a separate scheme in itself, and the Accountant in Bankruptcy does not split the administration costs of the debtor application process.

The total administrative costs of the team dealing with debtor applications are estimated at £928,700 per annum.

This figure does not include fees payable to third parties associated with debtor applications which are beyond the Accountant in Bankruptcy''s direct control; principally the costs of advertising the award in the Edinburgh Gazette and registering the award with the Registers of Scotland.

The Accountant in Bankruptcy maintains the Register of Insolvencies in Scotland and publishes statistics on personal insolvencies in Scotland, quarterly on their website at www.aib.gov.uk and by financial year in their annual report, which is also available on their website.

The Accountant in Bankruptcy considers debtor applications and assesses eligibility for bankruptcy. Debtor applications for bankruptcy are all considered via the same application process and applications are not specifically considered as low income, low assets applications.

The Debt Action Forum (DAF) was a group of stakeholders and academics invited by Scottish ministers to consider measures that might create a coherent debt package to respond to the current financial climate. Minutes of the DAF meetings are available on the Accountant in Bankruptcy website at www.aib.gov.uk.

The members are:

Fergus Ewing, MSP	Minister for Community Safety (Chair)
Gillian Thompson	Accountant in Bankruptcy
George Way	Law Society of Scotland
Ann Condick	The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland
Susan McPhee	Citizens Advice Scotland
Yvonne Gallacher	Money Advice Scotland
Lindsay Montgomery	Scottish Legal Aid Board
Anne Feeney	Confederation of Scottish Local Authorities
Adrian Stalker	QC
George Gretton	The Scottish Law Commission
Frank Johnstone	Finance and Leasing Association
Karen Titulaer	British Bankers Association / Committee of Scottish Clearing Bankers

 

There was no formal consultation on the Debt Arrangement Scheme (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2009 (SS1 2009/234). The Accountant in Bankruptcy did however run a series of workshops with stakeholders and met regularly with the money advice sector at various stages during the regulation making process.

Stakeholders included representatives from:

HM Revenue and Customs

Eversheds

Institute of Revenues Rating and Valuation

Lloyds TSB

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland

Money Advice Scotland

Citizens Advice Scotland

Glasgow City Council

South Lanarkshire Council

North Lanarkshire Council

Highland Council

Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice

Argyll and Bute Council

Fife Council

North Ayrshire Council

Accountant in Bankruptcy

 

It is not the Scottish Government''s role to determine on whether an authority has appropriately complied with its public sector equality duties. However, as the Scottish Government is engaged with community planning partnerships (CPPs) in the development of single outcome agreements (SOAs), it recognises its responsibility to work with partners to ensure that equality is properly considered and reflected.

To support this, in March 2009 the Scottish Government and COSLA issued advice on Equality and Single Outcome Agreements “ Getting to Best Practice. This advice is intended to help community planning partners to consider how they may move beyond fulfilling their individual equalities obligations and toward jointly incorporating and reflecting equality in the ongoing development of SOAs.

A review of the low income, low asset (LILA) route into bankruptcy published in October 2008 concluded that the application fee was reasonable and minimised the administration cost to the public purse. The report is available on the Accountant in Bankruptcy website at www.aib.gov.uk. The report also gave a commitment to consider the fee once evidence had been provided by the advice sector.

A further review of the LILA route into bankruptcy is currently underway and is due to report findings by August 2009. A decision on the application fee will be made based on the findings and any evidence provided by stakeholders.

A review of the low income, low asset (LILA) route into bankruptcy, published in October 2008, is available on the Accountant in Bankruptcy website at www.aib.gov.uk.

Based on a sample of 2,011 debtors who became bankrupt between 1 April 2008 and 31 July 2008, the report found that the average LILA debtor has around £17,288 of debt and the majority of debtors owe between £5,000 and £19,999.

A further review of the LILA route into bankruptcy is currently underway and is due to report findings by August 2009.

The trust deed process was discussed as part of the work of the Debt Action Forum (DAF). There has not been any policy decision to change trust deeds at this time. Work is ongoing with stakeholders to consider the whether changes are required to trust deeds.