HC Deb 01 February 1996 vol 270 cc942-5W
Ms Lynne

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 12 December,Official Report, column 625, what considerations led the chief executive of the Child Support Agency to conclude that including fully assessed cases only in respect of child maintenance assessments gives a more accurate picture. [10189]

Mr. Andrew Mitchell

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant. She will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Miss Ann Chant to Ms Liz Lynne, dated 31 January 1996: I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about Child Support Agency maintenance assessments. My letter to you of 12 December 1995 updated information I had provided on 18 May 1995. The table providing information on the benefit status of parents with care and absent parents was amended to provide information at the full maintenance assessment stage. Previously the benefit status was determined at the point when maintenance application and enquiry forms were returned. It is more accurate to record benefit status at the end of the assessment process as there may be considerations that affect the benefit status between the time of receipt of the relevant maintenance form and completion of a full maintenance assessment. All the other tables shown in the answer were updated using the same definitions as previously used (which was fully assessed cases for all tables, apart from those relating to interim maintenance assessments). I hope this is helpful.

Ms Lynne

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to transfer Child Support Agency operations to local offices; and how this transfer will affect the operations of the agency's main centres. [11183]

Mr. Mitchell

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant. She will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Miss Ann Chant to Ms Liz Lynne, dated 31 January 1996: I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about the transfer of work from the Child Support Agency's six centres to local Field offices. As the Agency's Business Plan for 1995/96 explains, from April 1995 nearly all our field staff, who are based in local Social Security offices, have had better access to the Child Support Computer System (CSCS). They are able to register cases on the System and to deal with client enquiries more effectively. As much of our paper work is automated this has reduced clerical administration and the amount of forms and work sent between the centres and field offices. Plans are in hand for our staff in the field to play an even larger role during 1996/97 as they will also complete some maintenance assessments locally using CSCS. A pilot exercise will take place in six field offices within Dudley CSAC Business Unit involving the take-on of new applications for child support maintenance. Training for staff is due to be delivered next month, with the pilot exercise running from March to May. The exercise will be subject to a full and robust evaluation prior to any decision being made on the timing for national rollout. This work will be carefully integrated with the work on implementing the Departures system and is likely to continue over a two year period. The movement of the bulk of maintenance assessment work to the field will allow the centres to concentrate on maintaining an ever increasing caseload and the efficient and effective collection of child maintenance. I hope this is helpful.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many two-parent families are in receipt of(a) income support, (b) family credit and (c) disability working allowance; and for each benefit what is the number of two-parent families estimated to included a qualifying child for the purposes of the Child Support Act 1991; [12800]

(2) how many lone parent families are in receipt of (a) income support, (b) family credit and (c) disability working allowance; and for each benefit what is the number of lone parent families estimated to include a qualifying child for the purposes of the Child Support Act 1991. [12801]

Mr. Mitchell

The latest available information as at May 1994 is as follows:

Two-parent families Lone parent families
Income support 537,000 1,089,000
Family credit 315,000 236,000
Disability working allowance 1,000 —

There is no information available on the number of two-parent families that include a qualifying child for the purposes of the Child Support Act 1991.

We estimate that 1,068,000 lone parents receiving income support and nearly all of the lone parents in receipt of family credit have a qualifying child for the purposes of the Child Support Act 1991.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security in how many of the cases in which a child support officer refused a parent with care exemption on the grounds of harm or undue distress he or she decided not to issue a reduced benefit direction because there was a risk to the welfare of the child. [12781]

Mr. Mitchell

The information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when it is planned to republish the CSA's charter; and what plans there are to extend the commitments given to clients. [12790]

Mr. Mitchell

The Child Support Agency will publish its new charter in the next financial year. The charter will contain more information than the first version, cover a wider range of the agency's business, and concentrate on the agency's principle functions.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many child support appeal tribunals hearings have been held to date; what proportion of appeals have been successful; how often both the person with care and the absent parent attend; and how often the parties are represented; [12794]

(2) what proportion of child support appeals has been lodged with the independent tribunal service within the required 28 days; and, of those lodged after this time limit, what proportion are accepted. [12793]

Mr. Mitchell

The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.

1994 1995
Appeals lodged within 28 days — 71 per cent.
Appeals lodged over 28 days Admitted — 89 per cent.
Hearings held 6,129 6,859
Success rates — 64 per cent.
Attendance by absent parent and person with care — 21 per cent.
Attendance by representative — 16 per cent.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate how many(a) lone parent families and (b) two-parent families are denied access to the CSA by section 4(10)(a) of the Child Support Act 1991. [12797]

Mr. Mitchell

The information is not available in the format requested.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on research his Department(a) is conducting, and (b) has commissioned, on the subject of the Child Support Agency and child maintenance. [12779]

Mr. Mitchell

This Department does not generally carry out its own research. However, we have commissioned the following research from outside contractors, which is either in progress or under negotiation: a review of the operation of the requirement to co-operate provision; measuring self-employed income for the purposes of the Child Support Agency; a number of surveys on how absent parents view the system and the impact on their lives; and an extension of work on lone parents, benefits and maintenance by the Policy Studies Institute.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate how many potential section 4 applicants come to private arrangements for child maintenance and do not seek the CSA's services. [12798]

Mr. Mitchell

The information is not available.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to extend the Child Support Agency's powers to obtain information from the Inland Revenue. [12785]

Mr. Mitchell

The Child Support Agency already has powers which allow it to obtain information from the Inland Revenue. These powers relate solely to the tracing of both the current address, or the current employer, of the absent parent. We have no current plans to extend these powers further.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate how many departure applications are likely to be made to the CSA over each of the next three financial years and how many departure directions issued; what further grounds for departure will be added to those included in the Child Support Act 1991; and how long it is estimated that it will take for a departure officer to make a decision on a departure application. [12789]

Mr. Mitchell

There is insufficient data available at present to enable accurate estimates to be made of the likely number of departure applications or the proportion that are likely to be successful. However, estimates of the financial effect have been based on the broad assumption that no more than 10 per cent. of the Child Support Agency's caseload will qualify for a departure direction. One of the main reasons for running the pilot exercise from April this year is to provide the detailed information necessary to make accurate estimates.

Regulations for the conduct of the pilot exercise will be laid before Parliament in March. There are no plans for these regulations to add further grounds for a departure direction beyond those exemplified in the Act. However, the ground which deals with cases of inconsistent life style has been enhanced. It will now, for example, cover instances where parents divert income over which they have control to a third party in order to avoid their true liability.

The pilot exercise will also enable the Child Support Agency to produce estimates of the time it will take to process applications.

Mr. Wicks

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he will be making an announcement about the changes to compensation available to clients of the Child Support Agency who have suffered loss and distress; how many applications have been made to the Child Support Agency for compensation to date and how many have been successful; and what is the total that has been paid out in compensation. [12780]

Mr. Mitchell

I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Broxbourne (Mrs. Roe) on 7 November 1995,Official Report, columns 830–31.

There have been 1,182 applications for compensation made to the agency from launch in April 1993 to the 30 November 1995; the number of successful claims is 112; the total that has been paid out in compensation is £56,752.50.