Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Maintenance Service enforcement actions in the most recent year for which data is available resulted in (a) full recovery of arrears, (b) partial recovery of arrears and (c) no recovery of arrears, by type of enforcement action.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Maintenance Service cases involve missed payments for more than three months before enforcement action begins; and what factors account for delays.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the backlog of Child Maintenance Service enforcement cases and increase compliance.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of the total value of child maintenance arrears has been outstanding for (a) under 12 months, (b) 1 to 3 years, (c) 3 to 7 years and (d) more than 7 years.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department publishes annual accounts for the client funds relating to the statutory child maintenance schemes. The latest accounts for financial year ending 2025 provide relevant figures in Table 1: Analysis of unpaid maintenance by year they originate.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
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 effectiveness of enforcement, including the recovery rate following (a) liability orders, (b) bailiff action and (c) deduction orders.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many paying parents have a nil assessment for child maintenance, including by each reason for a nil assessment.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what performance metrics his Department uses to evaluate the timeliness and quality of support provided to Members of Parliament when handling child maintenance queries.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department’s internal performance metric is to aim to provide a response to MP and Customer enquiries or complaints within 15 working days or to advise them when to expect a response, if the matter is complex and will take longer. To embed quality and consistency into our handling of complaints and enquiries, DWP implemented a Complaints Quality Standards Framework in 2022, which is supported by internal quality assurance measures, and aligned to the Cross Government Complaints Standards.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what is the current total value is of child maintenance arrears.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Child Maintenance Service is committed to ensuring that child maintenance is paid in full and on time, and where arrears occur we take robust action to recover money owed to children and families.
The Department publishes quarterly statistics for the Child Maintenance Service and the latest statistics are currently available to June 2025. Table 5 of the latest National tables shows the total amount of child maintenance that Paying Parents should have paid since the Child Maintenance Service began, and how much of that has not been paid as at the end of June 2025.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of child maintenance arrears that are (a) likely to be recovered in full, (b) partly recoverable and (c) unlikely to be recovered.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Administrative child maintenance schemes have operated in the UK since 1993. This response addresses the position of arrears under the 2012 child maintenance scheme, which has managed new applications since December 2012. There are legislative differences between arrears arising under this scheme and those accrued under previous schemes.
The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) has a low percentage of unpaid maintenance. 7% of the total maintenance due to be paid since the CMS began, remains to be collected through Collect & Pay
Under the CMS 2012 scheme, all arrears are regarded as collectable unless the receiving parent (or child in Scotland) requests that CMS cease action, or in limited circumstances such as the death of the paying parent where recovery from the estate is not possible. As arrears are owed to the receiving parent rather than the Secretary of State, CMS does not deem any debt uncollectable. CMS continues to focus on enforcement based on the paying parent’s ability to pay, which may vary over time, and actively pursues unpaid maintenance of all ages to ensure children receive the financial support to which they are entitled.
Asked by: Tom Tugendhat (Conservative - Tonbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of child maintenance owed is collected within (a) 3, (b) 6 and (c) 12 months of assessment.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.