Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will assess the costs and benefits of classifying parentally-agreed child support as income for means-tested benefits.

In order to help encourage parents to take financial responsibility for their children and maximise the amount of maintenance that flows from the non-resident parent to the child, child maintenance payments made under the statutory scheme or through a family based arrangement are not treated as income for means tested benefits.