§ Ms LynneTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many section 18 appeals have been(a) upheld and (b) turned down by the Child Support Agency in each month since April 1993. [15085]
§ Mr. Andrew MitchellThe administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant CB. She will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Miss Ann Chant to Miss Liz Lynne, dated 19 February 1997:
I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about the number of section 18 appeals handled by the Child Support Agency.707WThere are no such things as section 18 appeals but the Agency handles section 18 reviews (normally referred to as second tier reviews). These are usually requested, in writing, when a client—either absent parent or parent with care—disagrees with a Child Support Officer's decision. If the client is still not satisfied following the review, they have the option to lodge an appeal, which will be handled by an independent Appeal Tribunal.The attached table shows the breakdown of second tier review applications which have been cleared by the Agency; a monthly breakdown is available only from August 1994.I hope this is helpful.
Child Support Agency Second Tier Reviews (August 1994-December 1996) Month Second Tier Reviews Requests Refused/Withdrawn Second Tier Reviews Completed August 1994 1,364 741 September 1994 1,178 855 October 1994 1,308 1062 November 1994 1,303 1,137 December 1994 1,002 970 January 1995 1,240 1,205 February 1995 1,250 1354 March 1995 1,294 1,470 April 1995 1,409 880 May 1995 897 1,014 June 1995 1,141 999 July 1995 1,040 1,170 August 1995 1,412 1,124 September 1995 1,329 883 October 1995 1,510 929 November 1995 1,638 975 December 1995 1,027 651 January 1996 1,552 872 February 1996 1,607 1,174 March 1996 1,249 1,182 April 1996 1,409 857 May 1996 1,576 883 June 1996 2,023 955 July 1996 1,869 1,022 August 1996 1,981 1,005 September 1996 2,198 1,152 October 1996 2,654 1,276 November 1996 2,754 1,140 December 1996 1,759 798 Total 43,973 29,735
§ Ms LynneTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what actions are being taken by the Child Support Agency concerning allegations of fraud in respect of the production of posters for the Child Support Agency; and if he will make a statement. [15659]
§ Mr. Andrew MitchellThe administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant CB. She will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Miss Ann Chant to Ms Liz Lynne, dated 19 February 1997:
I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about action being taken by the Child Support Agency into allegations of fraud in respect of the production of posters.I am unaware of any such allegations. However, internal control systems within the Agency raised serious concerns over a service for distribution of posters. I can confirm that last year the Agency passed papers to the police in connection with previous business dealings with a private firm.It would not be appropriate to comment further or speculate on a case which is still under police investigation.I hope this is helpful.