Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Collect and Pay charges on the financial stability of paying parents; whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing income and expenditure assessments before enforcement action is taken through Collect and Pay; and whether he plans to review the Child Maintenance Service enforcement regime and charging structure.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) operates on the principle that both parents have a financial responsibility towards their children. The Department keeps the operation of the CMS under review, including its charging arrangements and enforcement processes.
Collection fees were introduced to encourage compliance and contribute towards the cost of operating the service. The Government has consulted on reforms that would remove Direct Pay and introduce a revised charging structure, including lower fees (2%) for compliant parents while retaining higher charges (20%) for non-compliance. Alongside these reforms, we are improving support for Family-Based Arrangements so that parents for whom a private arrangement works well can manage maintenance outside the statutory scheme, helping to ensure that fees are only paid by those families who need the CMS's ongoing support
The CMS has a broad range of enforcement powers, including deductions from earnings and bank accounts, the use of enforcement agents, charging orders, passport and driving licence disqualification, and commitment to prison. In the year ending March 2026, the CMS collected ÂŁ231 million through enforcement action, the highest amount collected through its enforcement powers.
Where a parent fails to pay, the CMS will take action to re-establish compliance and recover arrears, using the enforcement power most likely to secure money for children. The Government is also introducing Administrative Liability Orders, which will streamline the enforcement process and enable faster action against non-compliant parents.
The Child Maintenance Service takes account of a paying parent's financial position when setting arrears repayment arrangements. Whilst the aim must be to get on-going maintenance payments flowing and to recover arrears as quickly and reliably as possible, consideration is given to individual financial circumstances to ensure repayment rates are appropriate.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Child Maintenance Service's use of its enforcement powers in recovering unpaid child maintenance; and what steps he is taking to ensure that parents with substantial arrears cannot avoid payment for prolonged periods without meaningful enforcement action.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) operates on the principle that both parents have a financial responsibility towards their children. The Department keeps the operation of the CMS under review, including its charging arrangements and enforcement processes.
Collection fees were introduced to encourage compliance and contribute towards the cost of operating the service. The Government has consulted on reforms that would remove Direct Pay and introduce a revised charging structure, including lower fees (2%) for compliant parents while retaining higher charges (20%) for non-compliance. Alongside these reforms, we are improving support for Family-Based Arrangements so that parents for whom a private arrangement works well can manage maintenance outside the statutory scheme, helping to ensure that fees are only paid by those families who need the CMS's ongoing support
The CMS has a broad range of enforcement powers, including deductions from earnings and bank accounts, the use of enforcement agents, charging orders, passport and driving licence disqualification, and commitment to prison. In the year ending March 2026, the CMS collected ÂŁ231 million through enforcement action, the highest amount collected through its enforcement powers.
Where a parent fails to pay, the CMS will take action to re-establish compliance and recover arrears, using the enforcement power most likely to secure money for children. The Government is also introducing Administrative Liability Orders, which will streamline the enforcement process and enable faster action against non-compliant parents.
The Child Maintenance Service takes account of a paying parent's financial position when setting arrears repayment arrangements. Whilst the aim must be to get on-going maintenance payments flowing and to recover arrears as quickly and reliably as possible, consideration is given to individual financial circumstances to ensure repayment rates are appropriate.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her department has made on the availability of NHS Funding for the breast cancer drug Enhertu in England and Wales, in the context of treatment available to Scottish patients.
Answered by James Frith - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Members to the answer provided on 17 July to Question 17825.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has been made of the effectiveness of the Disabled Facilities Grant means-testing system for homeowners.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided on 23 June in response to Question 10808.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to reform the Disabled Facilities Grant to improve access for disabled homeowners with high adaptation needs, particularly those with degenerative conditions such as Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Further to the answer provided by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on 18 November 2025 in response to Question 88803, local authorities have discretion in managing their Disabled Facilities Grant funding and can publish a local housing assistance policy, including detail on how they will respond to degenerative conditions such as primary progressive multiple sclerosis.
The Department of Health and Social Care has provided ÂŁ723 million in funding for the Disabled Facilities Grant in 2026/27. The Government continues to keep all aspects of the Disabled Facilities Grant under consideration.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average response time was for complaints submitted to the Child Maintenance Service in the last 12 months; what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Independent Case Examiner process for complaints relating to the Child Maintenance Service; and whether he plans to review the Child Maintenance Service complaints process.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department aims to respond to complaints within 15 working days or, where a case will take longer than 15 days to respond to, set a resolution plan with the customer where cases are complex and may take longer. A resolution plan is a clear outline of how we will address and resolve a complaint. It sets out what actions will be taken, who is responsible, and the expected timescales for completing these actions.
Complaints about the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) are handled in line with the Department's complaints process. The Department keeps its processes under continual review and continues to improve the customer experience through wider service modernisation and quality improvement activity. As part of CMS’s ambition to continuously improve the service provided to customers, they will look for and action improvements to processes including complaints as part of the normal activities.
The Department recognises the important role of the Independent Case Examiner (ICE) in providing an independent review of complaints where customers remain dissatisfied after exhausting the Department's complaints process. The CMS works closely with ICE and considers the findings and recommendations arising from its investigations to identify opportunities for service improvement and to enhance the service provided to customers.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of (a) alternative operational roles, including as an airborne command and control platform coordinating uncrewed systems, (b) transferring airframes to support Royal Marines littoral operations and (c) trials of crewed-uncrewed teaming and counter-drone capability conducted on the Wildcat platform by Leonardo, Dstl and the Royal Navy in the context of the retirement of the Army Air Corps Wildcat AH1 fleet from 2027.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Further to the Defence Investment Plan announcement of 30 June 2026, Defence continues to examine options associated with the planned withdrawal of the Wildcat AH1 fleet from service from 2027. Work is being undertaken to understand potential opportunities, and it would be inappropriate to comment further while this work remains ongoing.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has for Army Air Corps Wildcat AH1 airframes following their withdrawal from service from 2027, including whether any will be retained as a source of certified spares for the Royal Navy Wildcat HMA2 fleet.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Further to the Defence Investment Plan announcement of 30 June 2026, Defence continues to examine options associated with the planned withdrawal of the Wildcat AH1 fleet from service from 2027. Work is being undertaken to understand potential opportunities, and it would be inappropriate to comment further while this work remains ongoing.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment his Department has made for the potential merits of legally recognising and providing green representatives in workplace unions.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
The Government recognises the valuable role of trade unions and their workplace representatives.
That is why, through the Employment Rights Act 2025 we have strengthened rights to reasonable paid time off for trade union representatives and trade union equality representatives.
While there is no separate statutory framework for trade union green representatives, where a workplace green representative is also a trade union representative, they may benefit from the new statutory rights relating to trade union representatives.
The Government has no current plans to introduce a separate statutory framework for trade union green representatives.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the additional defence funding set out in the Defence Investment Plan includes provision for the acquisition and ongoing support costs, including maintenance and infrastructure, associated with the planned procurement of F‑35 aircraft; and whether he plans to procure additional F‑35B aircraft alongside the 12 announced in that plan.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Discussions with the F-35 Joint Program Office (JPO) are ongoing regarding the procurement profiles and delivery schedule for the next batch of F-35 Lightning aircraft. The next batch is planned to include at least 12 F-35A aircraft, as announced in the Defence Investment Plan, with the balance of variants to be determined in accordance with military requirements. All F-35 acquisitions include very detailed assessments for the provision of support, maintenance and infrastructure.