Crime victims to benefit as court poor box scrapped

Victims of crime will benefit most from a government decision to scrap the poor box and instead have offenders pay into a centralised fund.

The Cabinet agreed yesterday to do away with the court poor box and instead have offenders pay into a more transparent fund for minor offences.

The Community Sanctions Bill will also result in reduced prison terms for minor offences and allow for offenders to carry out more community work, the Government said.