Magistrates protest over Home Office fine / Whitehall and Westminster World, 13 April 2007
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"A magistrate who resigned in protest to a new surcharge for criminals has been backed by his professional association. Cambridgeshire JP Alan Williams stepped down after the government imposed a £15 levy on top of every fine issued to people convicted in the courts. The Home Office said the initiative would raise £16m for victims, but Williams described the measure as a “purely arbitrary levy” and accused the government of using magistrates as “tax collectors”."