MAGISTRATES' courts in the North-East have been named as some of the best in England and Wales at collecting fines.

Three magistrates' courts committees in the area collected 90 per cent or more of all court-imposed fines in the past financial year.

They were North Yorkshire (98 per cent), Cleveland (91 per cent) and Durham (90 per cent.)

Only nine other committees achieved such a high success rate, out of 42 across England and Wales.

Courts Minister Christopher Leslie said the excellent collection rate was due to a "get tougher" package of measures during the past year and an ongoing commitment at a local level to crack down on fine defaulters.

But, despite the excellent figures, he warned that committees should not become complacent and should build on the good work done so far.

"The high collection rate provides compensation for victims, sends a no-nonsense message to fine defaulters and increases public confidence in the criminal justice system," he said.

"A new fines enforcement regime, contained within the Courts Act, came into effect late last year giving magistrates greater powers to deal more effectively with fine defaulters, particularly those who persistently refuse to pay their debt."

He said other measures had improved fines collection.

These included a new offence of failing to provide details of income and expenditure, a new policy that means fines will no longer be written off, and a financial incentives package for fines collection staff.