Average fine of £204 for having heroin

THE average fine given to offenders for possession of heroin in Edinburgh was £204 last year, while people caught with cocaine could expect an average fine of £219.

A total of 51 people were fined for heroin possession in 2008/9, when it was the main offence they faced at Edinburgh Sheriff Court, while 58 were fined for having cocaine.

The 32 offenders fined for possessing cannabis were given an average punishment of 155, while the 32 people caught with Ecstasy were fined an average 216 for their offence.

The figures were released by Fergus Ewing MSP, community safety minister, in a response to a parliamentary question by Lothians Tory MSP Gavin Brown.

His answer also revealed that the number of fines for these drug offences at Edinburgh Sheriff Court rose from 139 in 2007/8 to 173 in 2008/9.