§ Mr. George Cunninghamasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) whether he will give figures indicating what proportion of maintenance 294W defaulters against whom suspended committal warrants are issued pay up before they go to prison;
(2) on what evidence the Minister of State, Home Office stated (Official Report, 8th May, column 1589) that 90 per cent. of maintenance defaulters against whom suspended committal warrants are issued pay up before they go to prison.
§ Mr. Alexander W. LyonStatistics relating to the effectiveness of the suspended committal warrant procedure are not kept on a regular basis, but an informal survey of six magistrates' courts carried out by the Home Office showed that nearly 90 per cent. of the persons who were made subject to a suspended committal warrant in 1973 avoided imprisonment by payment of the sum due.