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Criminals who were ordered to repay the profits of their offending owe the public purse over £5 million, according to new figures obtained by the Scottish Conservatives.

Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service data released under Freedom of Information law show that there are currently 89 confiscation orders in arrears, worth a total of £5,065,459.

Shadow justice secretary Liam Kerr said the figures were evidence that “crime pays under the soft-touch SNP” and “an insult to victims”.

Confiscation orders require a criminal to pay back a sum of money representing the financial benefit to them from illegal activities under proceeds of crime legislation.

Some criminals still owe cash years after their confiscation order was imposed by the courts.

The largest sum owed is £560,881, which was part of a £1m order imposed on Edinburgh brothel boss Margaret Paterson in 2015. She died in 2019 after repaying just £219,559, leaving prosecutors to try to recover the balance from her estate.

Scottish Conservative shadow justice secretary Liam Kerr MSP said: “These shocking figures are proof that crime pays under the soft-touch SNP.

“It’s clear that our proceeds of crime laws are simply not fit for purpose, with wealthy criminals having nothing to fear.

“Complacent SNP ministers are failing to address the scale of organised crime in Scotland and must give our police, prosecutors and courts the resources they need to do their jobs and recover this money.

“Hard-working Scots will be appalled that this money is not being repaid by offenders, especially at a time when nationalist ministers are cutting services and hiking taxes.

“The fact that criminals are being allowed to get away with this is another insult to victims of crime, who always seem to be an afterthought in the SNP’s justice system.”

Notes:

The total value of confiscation orders in arrears in Scotland is £5,065,459. According to the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service, 89 confiscation orders are outstanding worth £5,065,459 in total. (Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service FOI, 16 May 2025, available upon request)

Criminals still owe hundreds of thousands of pounds years after first being ordered to repay it. Among the 10 highest-value orders, 50% were imposed before 2016, with four dating back a decade – two from 2015, and two others from 2012 and 2014. (Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service FOI, 16 May 2025, available upon request)

Six of the 10 confiscation orders in arrears with the highest value have had no repayments made. Where repayments were made, they were a fraction of the overall cost. For example, an order imposed in 2012 has only had £5,200 repaid out of £200,000. (Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service FOI, 16 May 2025, available upon request)

The largest outstanding order is £560,881 owed by Margaret Paterson, who ran a brothel in Edinburgh for ten years. Paterson was ordered to pay £1 million but died in 2019 after paying just £219,559 leaving prosecutors to try and recover the rest of the money from her estate. (Scottish Legal News, 22 December 2022, link)

Funds recovered through confiscation orders are reinvested in communities. CashBack for Communities reinvests criminal assets recovered through the Proceeds of Crime Act into projects delivering positive outcomes for young people. Since 2008, £130 million has been invested in community initiatives and over 2.5 million activities and opportunities have been delivered. (SPICe, 9 October 2024, link)