§ Lord Northbourneasked Her Majesty's Government:
What was the cost of collection per £1 collected by the Child Support Agency in the year to March 2004. [HL4707]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Baroness Hollis of Heigham)During the 2003–04 financial year, for those clients using the agency collection service, the Child Support Agency received £580.270 million under child support arrangements. During the same period the agency arranged for £197.2 million of maintenance to be paid direct from one parent to the other. In the 2003–04 year the net administration costs of the agency were £322.983 million.
April 04 May 04 June 04 July 04 Aug 04 Sep 04 Applications on hand 168,962 182,763 195,887 206,959 216,511 229,949 Received 28,530 27,933 26,631 22,860 27,300 23,374 Clearances 14,729 14,809 15,559 13,308 13,862 13,257 Increase in month 13,801 13,124 11,072 9,552 13,438 10,177 Applications carried forward 182,763 195,887 206,959 216,511 229,949 1240,066 1 Figures from quarter 4 2003–04 onwards and scheme to date figures include clerical cases (new scheme cases unable to be progressed on the new system). Quarter 2 figures also incorporate some adjustments to take account of a reconciliation of clerical cases