Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the cost of living crisis on the timely and sufficient payment of child maintenance to resident parents; and what steps she is taking to ensure resident parents receive those payments.

In the quarter to June 22, 32,000 new applications were made which is a 64% increase in applications compared to December 2021 (Child Maintenance Service statistics: data to June 2022 (experimental)). The impact of the cost-of-living crisis may be influencing parents with care to apply in higher volumes as they seek more formal arrangements to receive regular child maintenance.

We recognise the increasing cost of living may impact upon the affordability of child maintenance payments and we will continue to develop referral pathways to forms of support such as mediation, financial support and debt advice.

Where a parent can pay, but chooses not to, we will continue to take robust action. Since 2012, when CMS began, we have collected and arranged 92% of all maintenance due to be paid.