Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effect on the administering of child maintenance of the redeployment of staff from the Child Maintenance Service to help process the increase in claims for universal credit resulting from the covid-19 lockdown.

The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) is making temporary changes to services to continue to ensure we can deliver our priorities to support separated parents and also to help wider efforts to provide essential financial support to more people.

Child Maintenance services can be accessed online with parents urged to make use of this in the first instance, and phone lines remain open for those who need them. The CMS has updated guidance on telephone and online services to encourage parents to report changes online where possible, except where changes must be reported by phone.

Over time the CMS will ensure that everyone pays or receives the right amount of child maintenance. No one will get away with giving false information and those abusing the system could find themselves subject to the full extent of our enforcement powers.