People in Wales were far more likely to receive a fine for Covid rules but many fines were given to people from England who travelled into Wales, according to a new report. Academics at the University of Edinburgh’s Law School have gone through in detail all the fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued under the Coronavirus Regulations in Wales and England between March 27, 2020, and May 31, 2021.
The data shows the rate of FPNs issued per 10,000 adults in Wales was 1.9 times higher than in England. It also showed that three-quarters of fines issued in Wales to people who had come from outside the relevant police force area had come from England.
The regulations introduced to give these temporary powers of enforcement to police were to help stop the spread of Covid-19. Police officers were given the power to issue FPNs and in some extreme cases to arrest people found to not be complying with the restrictions.
WalesOnline has previously reported several incidents of people being given fines for a whole host of reasons. For example one 20-year-old woman from Pontypool was ordered to pay more than £2,000 after visiting a home to support a friend who had fled an abusive relationship while a 26-year-old man from Ogmore Vale was ordered to pay £444 after a police officer caught him going fishing.
The research is very detailed and often compares how England and Wales have varied in terms of the amount of FPNs given out as well as who they were given to. These are key takeaways from the report.
People in Wales were twice as likely to be given a fine
Over the period police officers in England and Wales issued 122,506 FPNs (110,502 in England and 12,004 in Wales) in relation to breaches of restrictions on movement, attending gatherings, and failure to comply with instructions. The rate of fines issued per 10,000 adults in Wales was 1.9 times higher than in England though the difference between the two countries declined over time.
There were also differences in what people were fined for in England compared to Wales. A far higher proportion of fines on the other side of the border were issued for attending illegal gatherings whereas in Wales the same proportion were issued for attending gatherings and travel/movement.
The rate of enforcement was higher in Wales throughout the pandemic but the difference to England was greatest during the first lockdown. Interestingly around two-thirds of all fines in both England and Wales were issued between January and May 2021. This was in the aftermath of the Delta variant.
Three-quarters of fines for people from outside of the force area came from England
People who were not living in the police force area being fined was much more common in Wales than in England. In Wales they accounted for 30.5% of fines compared to just 21% in England.
Of these people who were from outside the force area where they were fined three-quarters of the people penalties issued in Wales had travelled from England whereas only 1% of fines issued to non-residents of English force areas had travelled from Wales (clearly Wales is a lot smaller than England so one would expect so divergence).
The report read: “Distinct differences in the profile of offences and offenders also suggest that police officers in Wales experienced a higher level of demand in terms of non-residents making illegal cross-border trips, especially along the border with England. Enforcement in Wales reflected far greater levels of cross-border travel with three-quarters of all FPNs issued to non-residents involving people travelling from England into Wales. Confusion about the different restrictions in place in England and Wales, and the earlier easing of restrictions in England (especially after the first lockdown), may have contributed to the elevated level of enforcement in Wales.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly the highest-ranking police forces during the first lockdown included several rural forces containing areas of outstanding natural beauty and national parks. However in 2021 there was an increase in forces covering large urban centres.
Poorer areas likely to see more fines
People who received fines were more likely to be living in poorer areas with the report finding that “FPN recipients were disproportionately likely to be living in [communities] ranked amongst the most deprived in England and Wales". In the first wave of the virus people in Wales who received fines were 4.3 times more likely to be from the most deprived 10% of areas than the least deprived. This figure was 7.2 times in England.
There is no data available on the socioeconomic background of the individuals who received fixed penalties with just the area they are from recorded. You can read analysis by WalesOnline about the impact of the pandemic on people from poor areas and from ethnic minority backgrounds here and here.
Far more young people were fined in Wales
Almost half of those who received FPNs were aged between 18 and 24 – more than four times higher than their population share in both England and Wales. Comparatively just over one in 10 FPNs were issued to people aged 45 or over who make up more than half of the population in both countries. However in Wales In Wales the rate of fines issued per 10,000 people aged 18 to 24 was almost double that for England, at 191.7 and 106.6 respectively.
Men significantly more likely to be fined than women
Males were significantly more likely to be issued with fines for breaking Covid rules than females in both Wales and England. The proportion of fine recipients who were male was slightly, but significantly, higher in England (70.6%) than Wales (66.1%). The ratio of FPNs issued to men compared to women was highest during the first wave in both England (4.5) and Wales (3.4). Over time the male-to-female sex ratio increased over time in England but narrowed in Wales. Females who were fined were more likely to pay than males and those in the oldest age group were most likely to pay overall although 18-24 year olds were more likely to pay than some other age groups.
One person received 12 fines
There were 116,107 individual FPN recipients in England and Wales of which 4.4% were fined on more than one occasion. The vast majority (83.7%) of repeat FPN recipients received two fines while more than one in 10 (11.2%) were fined three times and one in 20 (5%) were fined on four or more occasions.
Repeat FPN recipients in England were 1.7 times more likely than single recipients to be living in one of the top 10% most deprived areas. In Wales the difference was narrower, at 1.3, but still statistically significant.
The largest number of fines recorded for one individual was 12. However it is unlikely that these were all payable tickets as rates of fine cancellation were higher amongst repeat recipients. No individual was fined in both England and Wales.
Why was Wales’ rate of fines so much higher?
According to the report's authors it is not possible to offer a definitive explanation for the higher rate of enforcement in Wales. They do however suggest that “differences in the nature and timing of the restrictions may have impacted differently on police use of enforcement”.
They added: “It is also possible that the much higher value of fines in England could have acted as a greater deterrent to members of the public (in terms of non-compliance) or may have influenced the enforcement activities of the police (by raising the threshold of tolerance amongst officers).”
A Welsh Government spokesman said: “Local authorities and police forces were responsible for the enforcement of coronavirus regulations and we worked closely with them throughout the pandemic to ensure appropriate and proportionate levels of enforcement to keep Wales safe. We worked hard to communicate legal requirements so people were clear on the steps they needed to take. An unprecedented amount of guidance was available on our website and we communicated changes directly to the public through advertising campaigns, press conferences and social media.”
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