§ Mr. Bill MichieTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will amend as a matter of urgency the present Inland Revenue new rules issued in April 1988–89 which debar an unwed parent from maintenance tax relief though paying maintenance to a child or children in accordance with the Child Support Act 1991 and which also affects those ex-married payers who lose their maintenance relief if their ex-spouse remarries, in order to allow those taxpayers to receive tax relief in accordance with the old rules.
§ Mr. DorrellNo. The new rules on tax relief for maintenance payments, which were introduced in the Finance Act 1988, ensure that married couples are not treated less generously than divorced, separated and unmarried people.