Sally-Ann Hart (Hastings and Rye) (Con) I beg to move, That the
Bill be now read a Second time. I am pleased that we have time
today to debate this Bill, which is an important measure to help
safeguard victims of domestic abuse who use the Child Maintenance
Service. MPs from across the House will have experienced casework
where constituents—predominantly women—who are struggling
financially find it very difficult to make their former partner pay
child maintenance...Request free trial
(Hastings and Rye)
(Con)
I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time.
I am pleased that we have time today to debate this Bill, which
is an important measure to help safeguard victims of domestic
abuse who use the Child Maintenance Service. MPs from across the
House will have experienced casework where
constituents—predominantly women—who are struggling financially
find it very difficult to make their former partner pay child
maintenance and have to chase this through the CMS.
We have all seen the impact, mainly on women, and children, when
abusers have made it difficult for their formers partners by
using money as a means of controlling them. Although the majority
of separated parents do all they can to make sure they
financially support their children, we have all had casework on
the non-payment of child maintenance. I praise in particular the
work of , the Minister in the
other place, for her focus and hard work on this issue, as well
as the CMS staff. Chasing non-payers, even when victims sometimes
just want to give up, lifts thousands of children out of poverty.
Since 2019, more than £1 billion of child maintenance support has
been collected and arranged each year through direct pay and
collect and pay. Until fairly recently, financial abuse has been
under-recognised as a form of domestic abuse, in which victims,
predominantly female, are cut off from sources of money by their
partner as a form of control. I therefore cannot discuss this
Bill, which is concerned with a niche aspect of domestic abuse,
without mentioning the work of consecutive Conservative
Governments on this serious issue. The most recent piece of
legislation against domestic abuse is the Domestic Abuse Act
2021, landmark legislation that significantly enhances protection
for victims of domestic abuse.
Some 2.4 million people in England and Wales are estimated to
have suffered some form of domestic abuse. In the UK, some
reports estimate that one in eight adults—5.9 million
people—experience economic abuse in their lifetime from a partner
or family member. Some 4.2 million of them are women, and this
financial abuse can leave women with no money for basic
essentials such as food and clothing. Financial abuse also has an
impact on children, who are real but all too often overlooked
victims.
In my former role as a magistrate, I witnessed at first hand how
perpetrators of domestic abuse can sit in a courtroom, lie, make
sounds or move in a certain way that, to the victim, is
terrifying. I have also witnessed those who try to use money or
access to money as a means of control, leaving victims feeling
worthless and powerless.
(Bosworth) (Con)
My hon. Friend is making a powerful speech and I support her Bill
wholeheartedly. She is right to point out how children are
victims. In my former role as a GP, before coming to the House, I
used to see the impact of domestic abuse on children, and not
only when they were young but throughout their lifetime. The real
key is to ensure that we clamp down on domestic abuse so that it
does not have that long-term impact on the rest of someone’s
life.
I thank my hon. Friend for his incredibly good intervention. I
absolutely agree.
Before I go into detail on the Bill’s aims, it may be helpful if
I explain, for hon. Members who may not be aware of it, how the
Child Maintenance Service operates. In an ideal world, the Child
Maintenance Service would not be needed. It is certainly not a
service that many people would want to use, but it is a safety
net when parents who have separated cannot reach agreement on
financial responsibilities, especially when one parent is
deliberately trying to evade paying their share. It goes without
saying that even when a relationship between parents breaks down,
their financial responsibilities to their children continue at
least until their children reach adulthood. It takes two to
tango. Responsibility must be shared.
The purpose of the Child Maintenance Service is to facilitate the
payment of child maintenance between separated parents who are
unable to reach their own agreement following separation. It is a
challenging job that is done in very difficult circumstances.
Getting a maintenance arrangement in place for children improves
their life and improves their chances in life. Ensuring that
parents take responsibility for their children, including
financial responsibility, means that they are giving them the
best start in life.
Many hon. Members will have had some experience with the Child
Maintenance Service. Some experiences will have been positive and
some negative, but those who remember the Child Support Agency
will know how much work has been done over the past few years to
improve the system. I am sure all hon. Members will acknowledge
that the Child Maintenance Service performs well—much better than
previous child maintenance systems. Improvements include
bolstering enforcement powers to tackle parents who refuse to pay
what they owe, and moving more of the service online. Passports
can be removed if a paying parent will not pay up, for example,
and eight out of 10 new claims are now made online.
The Child Maintenance Service manages child maintenance cases
through one of two service types: direct pay, and collect and
pay. With direct pay, the Child Maintenance Service provides a
calculation and a payment schedule, but payments are arranged
privately between the two parents. With collect and pay, the
Child Maintenance Service calculates how much maintenance should
be paid, collects the money from the paying parent and pays it to
the receiving parent. Under current legislation, direct pay is
the default option unless the paying parent agrees to use collect
and pay or demonstrates an unwillingness to pay their liability.
The Bill aims to extend the collect and pay service to victims of
domestic abuse, regardless of the payment history.
I know that the Child Maintenance Service already has safeguards
in place for victims of domestic abuse. For example, it ensures
that there is no unwanted contact between parents and provides
information on how parents can set up a bank account with a
centralised sort code so that they cannot be traced. I look
forward to reading the independent review of domestic abuse
support in the Child Maintenance Service, which was completed
earlier this year and which I hope will be published as soon as
possible. I am sure that we can all acknowledge that any
situation where former partners have to co-operate is always
going to be difficult for some people. That is particularly the
case where there has been domestic abuse in the relationship.
These proposals are about giving victims of domestic abuse the
choice to use collect and pay, so that they can decide what is
best for their personal circumstances. Thus they can avoid
entirely any need to transact with the other parent where that is
appropriate, which will help them to feel as safe as possible
using the Child Maintenance Service, particularly if the
relationship with their former partner was abusive. That will
protect them from ongoing coercion and abuse in their financial
arrangements.
(Warrington South) (Con)
My hon. Friend is making a powerful speech. Can she just set out
how the system will work? She mentions that she was a magistrate,
and she knows that I also carry out that function. Would it be
that, at the conclusion of a domestic abuse trial or sentencing,
there would be a court order in place to ensure that the payments
were made, or would it be some other way?
This Bill represents the change to primary legislation, and I
understand that there will be secondary legislation on how the
system will work in practice, including what evidence of domestic
abuse will be required and whether there will be a court order or
some other mechanism, such as a finding in a fact-finding
hearing. That will become apparent in due course through
secondary legislation.
The Bill will amend primary legislation to allow victims of
domestic to use the collect and pay service without the consent
of the other parent where there is evidence of domestic abuse
against the requesting parent—it could be against the paying or
receiving parent—or even abuse against children in their
household by the other parent involved in the case. As hon.
Friends may be aware, there are collection charges for the use of
the collect and pay service of 20%, on top of the maintenance
liability for the paying parent and 4% of the maintenance
received for the receiving parent. While the Minister is clear
that charges are the right approach for current users of this
service, I am grateful to him for indicating that he is willing
to consider whether an exemption may be appropriate in these
cases.
I want to thank the Minister and Department for Work and Pensions
officials for all their help with the Bill, as well as all hon.
Members in the Chamber for being here to debate it; I very much
hope it will receive their support today.
1.12pm
(North Devon) (Con)
I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Hastings and Rye
() and thank her for bringing
forward such an important piece of legislation. As she rightly
said, some of the most harrowing casework we deal with is often
in this area.
North Devon Against Domestic Abuse reports that one in five women
and one in seven men have reported experiencing economic abuse as
part of a relationship. That can lead to severe financial
hardship, debt and emotional distress. The charity offers advice
and support to victims of domestic abuse across North Devon as
they rebuild their lives, and helps them to build financial
resilience and learn money management skills.
Economic abuse is when perpetrators seek to reinforce or create
economic dependency and instability, limiting victims’ choices
and their ability to access safety. It does not require physical
proximity, so it can continue after separation. Economic abuse
was defined in the landmark Domestic Abuse Act 2021 and can
include taking control of family finances and not keeping
partners aware of bills or debts, refusing to contribute or
taking victims’ contributions beyond a fair balance, and
forbidding the claiming of universal credit or benefits, or
insisting they are put into an account that victims do not have
access to, to name but a few.
Those actions can all leave lasting marks on victims who are
trying to rebuild their lives and their families’ lives. Pushing
them into a situation where they are financially exposed to their
abuser can impact their ability to build a healthy life. It is
also a continuation of abuse, using children as a tool to cause
distress. Testimony shows that the legacy of that abuse can lead
to some victims’ not pursuing the legal entitlements of their
children. One said, “I haven’t arranged any child maintenance
because I don’t want to have any aggravation from him.”
Dr Evans
My hon. Friend is making a fantastic start to her speech. That is
exactly why we need the Bill: it circumvents that and protects
victims of confirmed domestic violence, so they do not have to go
through that heartache and stress, and do not have to front up
against difficult perpetrators of domestic violence. It makes
sure that there is stability and safety for them and the family
that they are now supporting.
I agree with my hon. Friend; what we hear is really harrowing.
The next testimony says, “The Child Maintenance Service is his
last avenue of financial control, so he uses this wherever
possible.”
I also sit on the Work and Pensions Committee, which is currently
hearing evidence on this issue. One person said, “In my case, my
ex-partner declared an income of less than £8,000 per annum, yet
sent my children postcards from all his holidays—skiing in France
and Italy, two three-week trips across the whole of the USA, spa
weekends and city breaks. Then they had postcards of their
father’s new cars: a McLaren and a Bentley. He moved into a
three-bedroom house in a desirable area of Cheshire. How on earth
is that possible for someone who earns less than £8,000 a year?
Meanwhile, I was struggling to pay my utility bills, let alone
their after-school clubs and school trips. I am left wondering
why none of the evidence was taken into consideration by the
CMS.” Some joined-up thinking and common sense is needed. Even
when the other parent provides ample evidence that income is
being under-reported, the paying parent is simply taken at their
word.
We often hear about women experiencing that, but the Select
Committee has heard equally harrowing evidence from gentlemen.
One said:
“I have 3 children from my previous relationship. Despite the
narrative often spun, I am not a dead beat dad, and not all
mothers are saints deserving of children. I am a loving father
who is paying the consequences of a malicious partner who is
using a government tool as part of her domestic violence
campaign. During this relationship I was subject to physical,
psychological and financial damage… Since I fled, the physical
aspect has ceased. Yet abuse at the hands of my ex-wife
continues. I don’t report this flippantly. However, the vehicle
for her abuse is the Child Maintenance Service, who she uses to
continue to financially and psychologically control me from afar,
while also denying me access to my children. I’m exhausted by the
situation, and with the current cost of living crisis and
constant squeeze on my finances, I can honestly say that if I
commit suicide, it will be as a direct result of my ex-wife’s
abuse in combination with the Child Maintenance Service.”
Although non-payment is not a new tool, it has been exacerbated
during covid-19, as the non-resident parent has had increased
opportunities to abuse the system, and there have been lower
risks associated with that. My hon. Friend the Member for
Hastings and Rye has done great work to bring the Bill before us
today, and I am delighted to support it, because it is an
important step to alleviate the burden on families who have
already experienced trauma, and puts the onus on the perpetrator,
rather than the victims.
1.17pm
(Southend West) (Con)
I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Hastings and Rye
() on bringing forward this
incredibly important Bill. I also welcome the new Minister to his
place—I am sure we can expect great things over the coming
months. My hon. Friend the Member for Hastings and Rye is a real
champion for women and children in this place. As a fellow
lawyer, I know the importance that she places on ensuring that we
have good laws that are implemented properly to protect children
and mothers in particular.
This is a vital Bill. The breakdown of any relationship is
obviously sad, but especially when children are involved. It is a
fundamental part of our system, however, that no mother should be
left to support her children alone following the breakdown of a
relationship. That has been true in our country for centuries,
but the Child Maintenance Service, which was launched in 2012,
was supposed to enforce that basic right.
To put the Bill in context, there are an astonishing 2.3 million
separated families in the UK, and 3.6 million children are part
of those families. Of those 3.6 million children, almost
850,000—not far short of 1 million—are covered by Child
Maintenance Service arrangements. It is vital that those
arrangements are fit for purpose and that children are not left
high and dry. Sadly, that system is not always fit for purpose,
which is why we need this vital Bill.
Mr (Old Bexley and Sidcup)
(Con)
My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. I wholeheartedly
support the Bill. Many of my constituents have been in touch to
highlight that, when they have requested to move to the collect
and pay service, they have been rejected due to arrears from the
paying parent. Does she agree that ensuring that arrears are not
a barrier to entry to the collect and pay service is vital for
the victims of domestic abuse?
Yes, this is another way in which the father, or the estranged
parent, uses money as a form of control. Dealing with the arrears
part of the system is vital.
The other week, my brilliant caseworker, Charles, brought to my
attention one case that, frankly, appalled me, but these are
common cases; we all receive such cases in our inboxes every
week. The marriage of one of my constituents broke down in 2018,
and she became the primary carer for the three sons. The Child
Maintenance Service decided on an amount to be paid by the
father, but the father had not disclosed a large personal income.
My constituent appealed against this and it took two-and-a-half
years before the Child Maintenance Service agreed with her that
the father was underpaying. It then set a new repayment schedule
and allowed the father to pay off that debt in small instalments
each month, thus penalising my constituent and her children
through absolutely no fault of their own. As I understand it, he
did not start paying off the debt; it is still accruing and the
Child Maintenance Service is doing very little to help.
My constituent has had to fight every step of the way to ensure
that her children’s father actually pays what he needs to, and we
have still not reached a conclusion. Quite frankly, this sort of
behaviour is abuse. It is using money as a weapon. It is a form
of domestic abuse and no one should have to go through it. The
Child Maintenance Service must be informed to ensure that mothers
are not left out of pocket by their ex-partners. This Bill is a
vital way of advancing us on that journey.
The Bill, so ably spearheaded by my hon. Friend, will amend
primary legislation to allow victims of domestic abuse to use the
collect and pay service where there is evidence of domestic abuse
against the requesting parent—this could be the paying or the
receiving parent—or even children in their household by the other
parent involved in the case.
As other hon. Friends have mentioned, there are collection
charges for the use of the collect and pay service. I do not
complain about the 20% on top of the maintenance liability for
the paying parent, but the 4% charge that the receiving parent
must pay is wrong and should be amended. I understand that,
although the Minister is clear that charges are the right
approach for current users of the service, he is willing to
consider whether an exemption may be appropriate in these cases.
I look forward to hearing him clarify that point in his summing
up.
Clearly, the system has to be funded, but the right level of
evidence needs to be put in for those who are convicted of
domestic abuse. Does my hon. Friend have an idea about how the
Government might be able to work that through? It could be that
the victim of those who are fully convicted does not have to pay
those charges. That might be a nice solution and would allow the
removal of fees for those victims to go ahead.
My hon. Friend makes an important point. Obviously, evidence has
to underpin this service to make it fair, but in instances where
there is clear evidence, which can be assessed, it seems only
right that the parent can use the collect and pay service without
being financially penalised in any way.
We would all agree that domestic abuse, including financial
abuse, is horrific and that no one should have to endure it. As a
country, we want to support victims of domestic abuse. None of
our state systems should be allowed to make the survivors suffer
more than they already have. The Bill will improve the
Government’s offer to victims of domestic abuse in how they
receive child maintenance payments. We must not forget that these
payments often form a vital part of the recipient’s overall
income and finances, especially those who have endured domestic
abuse.
I am pleased to be here to support the Bill, and I am grateful to
my hon. Friend the Member for Hastings and Rye for giving us an
important opportunity and for spearheading this vital measure to
stand up for women and children.
1.24pm
(Darlington) (Con)
It is a privilege to be called to speak for the third time today
and to be able to support my hon. Friend the Member for Hastings
and Rye (), who is also my very good
friend, on the Second Reading of her hugely important Bill. As I
said earlier, I know only too well the privilege of doing well in
the ballot for private Members’ Bills, but I also know the
difficulties of guiding a piece of legislation through the House.
As my Bill progressed through the House I was honoured to have
the support of colleagues across the House, and I am delighted to
support my hon. Friend and her Bill.
Violence against women and girls is rightly a key focus for the
Government and for everyone in the House. That was detailed in
the recently published “Tackling violence against women and
girls” strategy, which builds on a long heritage of legislation
introduced by Conservative Governments, including the Children
Act 1989, the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, the Protection
of Freedoms Act 2012, the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and the
Domestic Abuse Act 2021, all of which contained steps and
measures to protect people.
It is all very well having legislation in place, but it is really
important that we have the financial backing to enforce it. Does
my hon. Friend welcome the £230 million from the Conservative
Government to do exactly that?
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for making that important point.
He has made it clearly and it is on the record, and I welcome
that investment.
As I have served on the Women and Equalities Committee and the
Domestic Abuse Bill Committee, and I engage regularly with my
local police, domestic abuse refuge and the night-time
economy—including my shift last week at the newly established
Number Forty night-time hub in Darlington—I am only too aware of
the need for society to do more to protect people. I am therefore
grateful to all hon. Members who are taking part in today’s
debate.
Domestic abuse is a crime. It is perpetrated in the privacy of a
place where everyone should feel safe by those who exploit and
abuse their position. It is right that we do all that we can to
restore a position of trust and safety for victims, and protect
and support children who are witnesses to domestic abuse and
punish and rehabilitate the perpetrators. Domestic violence as a
crime has both an instant impact and a long tail of consequences,
putting pressure on our charities, local authorities, schools and
prisons. At the root of this crime is the perpetrator, wreaking
havoc on a partner and often children too, creating huge costs to
our society both in money and in impact.
(Burnley) (Con)
An incredibly sad part of the covid-19 pandemic was the increase
in domestic abuse. I still meet my local police force, but during
the pandemic when I met it and discussed the issues that it was
dealing with, domestic abuse was always high up the list. Will my
hon. Friend join me in thanking the local organisations that we
all have in our constituencies, such as Safenet and Lancashire
Women in my constituency? We could all probably name-check
organisations that do a great deal of work in this area.
My hon. Friend makes an incredibly important point about the work
that was done in the covid lockdowns. I, too, regularly met my
local police force to discuss that issue, and it is right that we
do all that we can in Parliament to highlight that.
I want to pay tribute to all those charities and community groups
that work to support victims of domestic abuse—for example,
Family Help, an independent refuge charity in my Darlington
constituency that has done incredible work over the past 45
years. I wish it well for its fund-raising event in Darlington
tomorrow evening. I firmly welcome the fact that the Domestic
Abuse Act 2021, for the first time, established a
cross-Government statutory definition of domestic abuse, to
ensure that domestic abuse is properly understood, considered
unacceptable and actively challenged across statutory agencies
and in public attitudes. Domestic abuse is abhorrent, but
regrettably I doubt that there is anyone across the House who has
not heard a constituent’s story about the abuse that they have
suffered. Indeed, since being elected, I have met numerous
victims of domestic abuse, each with a moving personal story of
their ordeal. All too often, the abuse continues after a
relationship ends—something that this Bill seeks to tackle.
The Bill is hugely important, as it will take further steps to
protect people who use the Child Maintenance Service and will
complement the work that we have already done. I welcome the
changes that it would make to the system of payments. At this
juncture, I would like to ask the Minister to address in his
summing up a point not specifically covered in the Bill—namely,
how the banking system is abused by perpetrators as a form of
abusing victims. It will be interesting to hear what discussions
the Government are having with the banking sector to tackle that
particular issue.
I welcome the fact that the Child Maintenance Service has
substantially strengthened its procedures and processes to
support customers who are experiencing domestic abuse. In
particular, it has introduced a programme of domestic abuse
training that has been designed for and delivered to all CMS
caseworkers. This training takes the form of recognising that
domestic abuse takes different forms, including physical,
psychological, emotional and financial abuse.
Does my hon. Friend agree that lack of money and fear of living
in poverty due to lack of support prevents a lot of women from
leaving a domestic abuse setting in the first place, and that the
measure is, therefore, absolutely essential to giving women the
freedom to be able to make that first step?
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that intervention. It is
clear to all of us with any knowledge of domestic abuse that
perpetrators use the tool of coercion and financial control in
all sorts of forms against victims.
In autumn 2021, the Government commissioned an independent review
of ways in which the child maintenance system supports survivors
of domestic abuse. The review was completed in April 2022 and its
findings are now being considered. Could the Minister provide a
timeframe for when we might be able to expect the Government’s
response?
Child maintenance payments are key to reducing the net number of
children living in low-income households, through both family
based arrangements and Child Maintenance Service arrangements. It
is estimated, as we have heard, that there are 2.3 million
separated families in Great Britain, comprising 3.6 million
children. Some 60% of those separated families have a child
maintenance arrangement; two thirds are non-statutory and one
third statutory. Some 846,300 children are covered by Child
Maintenance Service arrangements, with 526,000 of them covered
through direct pay arrangements, and 298,000 through the collect
and pay service. The number of children covered by Child
Maintenance Service arrangements also increased by 26,300 between
March and June 2022.
The Child Maintenance Service manages cases through two service
types: direct pay and collect and pay. In direct pay cases, the
Child Maintenance Service calculates how much maintenance should
be paid, and the paying parent pays the maintenance to the
receiving parent directly. For collect and pay, the Child
Maintenance Service calculates how much maintenance should be
paid, collects the money from the paying parent and pays it to
the receiving parent. There are collection charges for the use of
the collect and pay service—20% on top of the liability for the
paying parent, and 4% of the maintenance received for the
receiving parent. Under current legislation, direct pay is the
default option unless both parents request collect and pay or the
receiving parent requests collect and pay and the paying parent
is deemed unlikely to pay by demonstrating an unwillingness to
pay their liability. This is so that paying parents have the
option to not incur additional charges should they pay in full
and on time. This applies to all cases irrespective of any other
personal circumstances between parents, including domestic abuse.
By requiring receiving parents who are the victims of domestic
abuse to use the direct pay service, the current system in place
for child maintenance forces them to have continued contact with
their abuser, increasing the harm and risk posed to victims of
domestic abuse.
Domestic abuse services have reported examples where Child
Maintenance Service staff have asked a victim or survivor of
domestic abuse to try to put direct pay arrangements in place
first, before asking for intervention by the CMS. Refuge has also
reported that CMS staff have asked victims or survivors of
domestic abuse to try to find out details of their abuser’s
earnings and workplace themselves, which carries a significant
risk by forcing the victim to have contact with their abuser.
It is absolutely wrong that under current legislation a paying
parent who has been abusive towards the other parent can refuse
the collect and pay option, meaning direct pay must be used.
Direct pay gives the abusive parent access to the abusee’s bank
account details, allowing abusers the opportunity to use the
banking system to continue their abuse through harassment using
payment.
(Heywood and Middleton)
(Con)
My hon. Friend is making an extremely powerful speech.
Mr Deputy Speaker ( )
Order. You do not have to look at me if it is too painful, but
please at least face the microphones.
Mr Deputy Speaker, you just can’t have too much of a good
thing.
My hon. Friend is making a powerful and relevant speech. On the
payment arrangements for collect and pay, the payer has to pay
20% but the recipient has to pay 4%. Does my hon. Friend agree
that the arrangement should perhaps be looked at more thoroughly,
so if somebody is forced to use this arrangement because of the
bad behaviour of the other party, they should not be liable for
that extra 4%?
My hon. Friend makes an important point, and I am sure the
Minister will, having heard him, address it in summing up.
To return to the use of the banking system as a means of
perpetrating abuse, I have worked with a number of banks on this
and know that many are working on ways to stamp it out. Abusers
can also use non-payment and deliberate payment on irregular days
to interfere with means-tested benefit entitlements. No victim or
survivor of domestic abuse should ever be told or forced to
contact their abuser; it is unquestionably a moral wrong.
I understand that these issues have been a source of controversy
since the inception of the current CMS and the introduction of
the direct pay service and charging, and the Bill will bring a
long overdue and welcome change to the system. I am also glad
that the Bill will extend not only to England but to Scotland and
Wales, providing consistent protections to victims of domestic
abuse across Britain. It is regrettable, however, that the
current suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly means it has
not been possible to extend the protections to the entirety of
the United Kingdom.
I want to stress the importance of cross-border unity across the
United Kingdom on this issue, so perpetrators cannot hide in one
jurisdiction from another.
I agree wholeheartedly with my hon. Friend.
My hon. Friend the Member for Hastings and Rye has introduced a
highly commendable Bill, putting further steps in place to right
a wrong that has existed in CMS payments since inception, and
providing a further level of protection to some of the most
vulnerable in our society by preventing abusers from further
torturing those who have escaped from a cycle of abuse through
the CMS.
This Bill clearly commands cross-party support and I offer my
sincere thanks to my hon. Friend for bringing it forward. I wish
her well as she continues to guide it through its legislative
process and hope to see it pass all its parliamentary stages and
make its way on to the statute book.
Mr Deputy Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
1.39pm
(Reading East) (Lab)
I am pleased to respond on behalf of the Opposition to this
important debate. We support this important Bill and see it as a
welcome step forward. Domestic abuse has an appalling impact on
women and families. As the shadow Home Secretary, my right hon.
Friend the Member for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford
(), said,
“everyone has the right to live in freedom from fear.”
This Bill will make some welcome changes to the law to protect
parents, children and wider families who are the victims of
domestic abuse. I pay tribute to the hon. Member for Hastings and
Rye () for her work on this
important Bill and I thank hon. Members from across the House for
their support today. I thank all those who have campaigned on
this important issue and in particular Refuge, Gingerbread and,
in my own area, Berkshire Women’s Aid.
As I mentioned before, we support this important piece of
legislation. However, I hope the Government will clarify some
important points to reassure survivors and consider doing more to
help former partners, children and wider families in a number of
ways that are related to the Bill. Turning to points of
clarification, I hope the Minister will explain what evidence
will be required to allow the Secretary of State to collect child
maintenance payments in the way that we heard earlier. We have
been told that the evidence will be set out in secondary
legislation, and it is important to remember that the
effectiveness of the Bill hinges on the evidence requirements in
these regulations. It would be helpful if the Minister reassured
the House about the nature of the evidence that will be
needed.
In addition to providing further clarification, I hope the
Government will consider introducing measures that offer further
help and support to the survivors of domestic abuse. For example,
will the Minister consider reviewing the fees associated with
using the collect and pay service? That was a point raised by a
number of hon. Members. Carrying out a review would allow the
Government to make an informed decision about whether to scrap
some of the fees for domestic abuse survivors.
As we have heard, it is still far too easy for perpetrators not
to pay child maintenance and withholding it is a common form of
post-separation abuse. Could the Minister tell the House when the
DWP will publish the findings of the independent review of the
Child Maintenance Service’s domestic abuse operational policies
and procedures? I remind him, as we heard from a Government
Member, that this investigation was due to finish in April and
yet, six months later, we have still not heard from the
Department. On the CMS’s treatment of survivors of domestic
abuse, concerns have been raised that, sadly, there have been
times when CMS staff could have offered a better service to
survivors. I hope the Minister will be able to update the House
on plans to improve staff training.
Finally, an important point raised by social workers who work
with domestic abuse survivors is that the cost of living crisis
has a far worse impact on victims of domestic abuse and, in some
cases, it may even create another significant obstacle to finding
help. I encourage the Government to consider taking additional
measures to understand how they can help survivors to manage in
the cost of living crisis. I hope the Minister has listened to
these points and will consider them carefully. If he is not able
to respond in full from the Dispatch Box, I ask him to write to
me and the shadow victims Minister to update us on the
Government’s response to these important issues. Time is
pressing, so I will conclude by emphasising that this important
Bill could make a significant difference to a group of women and
children who have suffered appalling domestic abuse, and I urge
the Minister to consider the points I have raised.
Mr Deputy Speaker ( )
On his reincarnation, if that is the right word, I call .
1.44pm
The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions ()
Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. It is an honour to speak in this
important debate and to assume my new ministerial
responsibilities that so directly relate to bettering people’s
lives across our country. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for
Hastings and Rye () for raising this important
issue and for introducing the Bill.
For context, as a former Victims Minister and a former Policing
Minister with responsibility for domestic abuse and VAWG, I
believe that the Bill is a welcome step forward that will help
victims of horrendous domestic abuse. I am pleased to confirm, in
that spirit, that the Government intend to support this Bill.
The Child Maintenance Service provides an important service
helping separated parents who are unable to make a family-based
arrangement to support their children. Child maintenance payments
provide vital support to single-parent families, and the CMS
provides support to many of the poorest single-parent families.
We know that, on average, approximately 140,000 fewer children
are growing up in poverty as a result of child maintenance
payments. This includes payments through both family-based
arrangements and arrangements made through the CMS. As my hon.
Friend said, the CMS has collected and arranged more than £1
billion-worth of child maintenance payments each year since
2019.
I will now say a few things about how domestic abuse victims are
dealt with in the service. The CMS is committed to ensuring that
all parents, no matter what their circumstances, feel safe when
applying for and using the service. We have already considered
the issue of domestic abuse and how it is best handled in the
CMS, and we have learned from cases where domestic abuse has been
a factor. To answer the shadow Minister’s point, training in this
area has been considerably improved in recent times to ensure
greater awareness.
Training is indeed very important. We talk a lot about the
victims of domestic abuse, but the CMS might be a place where we
can pick up on domestic violence and domestic abuse on the first
presentation. Is there training to make sure we pick up those
cases when they come forward?
My hon. Friend asks a very good question, and I am keen to obtain
an answer for him on that point. He will appreciate that I am
only a few hours into the role and this is quite an involved
question but, of course, he raises an important point. I will
make sure he receives a full response following this debate.
The CMS also ensures that there is no unwanted contact between
parents, and it provides information on how parents can set up a
bank account with a centralised sort code so they cannot be
traced. The application fee is also waived for victims of
domestic abuse, and CMS caseworkers can provide information to
our customers on a number of specialist domestic abuse
organisations.
In recent years, the CMS has strengthened its domestic abuse
training to ensure that caseworkers are well equipped to support
parents in vulnerable situations. However, the domestic abuse
landscape is always evolving and we are, of course, ready to
listen to feedback from customers, customer representatives and
stakeholders on this sensitive area. We already engage regularly
at ministerial and official level with MPs, interested parties
and the domestic abuse commissioner, and we will continue to do
so.
In the autumn of 2021, the Department commissioned an independent
review of the way in which the CMS supports survivors of domestic
abuse. The review was conducted by Dr Samantha Callan, who is a
leading expert on domestic abuse. The review has now completed
and is with the Government for consideration. We welcome the
opportunity to learn lessons and take whatever practical steps we
can to help separated parents who have experienced abuse to set
up safe maintenance arrangements.
My hon. Friends have spoken about the importance of this Bill,
but I would like to explain why the Government support it and see
the need for it to be enacted now. The CMS manages cases through
one of two service types: direct pay or collect and pay. For
direct pay, the CMS provides the calculation and a payment
schedule. The payments are arranged privately between the two
parents. Just to be clear, if necessary this can be done without
the parents having any direct communication. For collect and pay,
the CMS calculates how much maintenance should be paid, collects
the money from the paying parent and pays it to the receiving
parent. Under the current legislation, as my hon. Friend the
Member for Hastings and Rye said, direct pay is the default
option unless the paying parent agrees to use collect and pay or
demonstrates an unwillingness to pay their liability. With
collect and pay, paying parents pay an extra 20% on top of their
liability, so cases are generally moved to collect and pay only
when the paying parent is non-compliant.
There are some limited circumstances in which requiring a
receiving parent to continue to manage relations directly with
the other customer in their case seems inappropriate. I know that
the CMS has experience of such circumstances and is keen to give
customers the best service it can, but is bound by the current
rules. The Bill will directly address the situation. It will
allow a CMS case to be placed with the collect and pay service
when either parent applies for it on the grounds of domestic
abuse and when there is evidence that that is the right thing to
do in their case.
Normally, it is only the receiving parent who can request a move
of their case to collect and pay, on the basis that they are not
receiving their payments. However, we recognise the importance of
supporting any parent who is a victim of domestic abuse. Whatever
their role in the case, either a receiving or a paying parent
will therefore be able to request collect and pay.
To enable that, the Bill will provide the Secretary of State with
the power to make secondary legislation setting out the details
of circumstances in which the power can be used. That legislation
will deal with the types of domestic abuse evidence that the CMS
will accept in determining whether those circumstances apply in a
particular case. The House will have the opportunity, which I
think is welcome, to scrutinise that secondary legislation. The
details need to be in secondary legislation because the evidence
requirements may be complex and are likely to change over time as
the Government do further work—not only in relation to child
maintenance, but right across Government—to ensure we do all we
can to minimise the incidence of domestic abuse. The affirmative
procedure will be followed so that hon. Members have the
opportunity to scrutinise the legislation in this place.
We will, of course, consult widely when formulating our
proposals. We will aim to produce requirements that are sensitive
to the needs of domestic abuse victims and that have been
carefully evaluated and tested before being brought forward.
Given the importance of domestic abuse issues to hon. Members
throughout the United Kingdom, I should say a few words about our
work with colleagues in the devolved Administrations. I will not
mention Northern Ireland, where child maintenance is a devolved
issue, except to say that we will be working with Northern
Ireland colleagues to ensure that domestic abuse victims are
protected throughout the whole United Kingdom. However, I will
say a few words about how we will implement the Bill in Scotland,
as I know that colleagues who represent Scottish constituencies
are keen to be reassured that the Government are considering
child maintenance customers across Great Britain in the context
of the Bill.
The Bill uses the definition of domestic abuse set out in the
Domestic Abuse Act 2021. That Act does not extend to Scotland,
where the definition generally used is set out in separate,
devolved Scottish legislation. However, for ease of
implementation in an area as complex as child maintenance, in
which cases frequently fall within more than one jurisdiction in
the United Kingdom, the Bill allows for the Act’s definition to
apply throughout Great Britain for the purposes of the Bill.
The collection of child maintenance is governed by the same
statutory provisions in England and Wales and in Scotland. We are
keen to avoid the administrative complexity that could result
from different definitions applying in each jurisdiction, but I
acknowledge that the legislation will need to sit comfortably
alongside devolved legislation dealing with similar issues. We
will therefore work with legal colleagues and the Scottish
Government to ensure that the policy aim is effectively delivered
in Scotland.
Understandably, various colleagues—particularly my hon. Friends
the Members for Southend West (), for Hastings and Rye, for
Bosworth (Dr Evans) and for Heywood and Middleton ()—have raised the issue of
charging. Collection charges are applied to all CMS collect and
pay cases. The charges are 20% on top of the liability for the
paying parent, and 4% of the maintenance received by the
receiving parent. Running the collect and pay service incurs
costs for the taxpayer. It is therefore reasonable for most
parents to contribute towards running an expensive service.
However, we recognise that many of the parents whom the Bill aims
to support could be among the most vulnerable.
May I press on the Minister a point that I raised in my speech? I
appreciate that I may be catching him off guard today, but I
really think that the Government need to take a strong look at
the use of the banking system by others as a means of
perpetrating abuse; to work with payment reference services and
with the industry as a whole; and to talk to banks to ensure that
they do not become a means of facilitating such abuse. If the
Minister does not have the knowledge at hand, I would be grateful
if he wrote to me on that point.
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising this point about the
interaction with the banking system. What I do know is that the
CMS ensures that there is no unwanted contact between parents and
provides advice on how to set up a centralised sort code for the
parent’s bank account so that their location cannot be traced.
The service also signposts to charities and support lines that
victims can contact for support.
To go back to this point about collection charges, it is
important to say that they do not form part of the primary
legislation and are set out in secondary legislation.
Consideration is being given to exempting victims of domestic
abuse in these cases from collection charges. I hope that that
gives some reassurance to colleagues from across the House about
the fact that that active policy consideration is taking
place.
Finally, I wish to touch on the important point from my hon.
Friend the Member for Bosworth about detecting abuse. I am happy
to provide further information in writing, in the way that I
suggested I would earlier. However, I am able to advise now that
the CMS has substantially strengthened its procedures and
processes to support customers who are experiencing domestic
abuse. In particular, a programme of domestic abuse training has
been designed and is delivered to all CMS caseworkers. The
training takes the form of recognising that domestic abuse can
take various forms, including physical, psychological, emotional
and financial abuse. Appropriate signposting to domestic abuse
support groups takes place and advice is given on contacting the
police if necessary. If customers do not feel able to do that,
this is about asking whether they are content for the CMS to call
the police on their behalf.
The CMS also has a complex needs toolkit for its caseworkers,
which includes clear steps to follow in order to support
customers who are experiencing abuse. The toolkit is regularly
reviewed and strengthened on the basis of customer insight, which
is very welcome, because, for the very reasons that he
identified, these are important and serious issues. Where
domestic abuse happens, we want to see it dealt with swiftly and
responsibly and we want to ensure that people are able to access
the care and help they need.
In conclusion, this Bill is of great importance to victims of
domestic abuse and to colleagues from across the House, as
reflected in the debate. They have experience of using the CMS
when following up on what has been in their postbag and what they
have encountered in their constituency work. I am pleased that
the Bill has been introduced and I wish it a speedy passage
through this House.
1.57pm
With the leave of the House, I wish to thank all hon. Members for
their contributions today. I particularly thank my hon. Friend
the Member for North Devon () for highlighting the
economic abuse in her constituency, which is suffered by men,
women and children; my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West
(), who highlights the importance
of good law to protect women and children; and my hon. Friend the
Member for Darlington (), who highlights the work of
Conservative Governments to address violence against women and
girls, as well as the role of banks in helping to prevent or
facilitate the continuation of economic abuse. I also wish to
thank the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Reading East
(), for his positive comments and
support for the Bill, and the Minister and the Department for
Work and Pensions officials for their advice and support.
There are areas to consider further, including the secondary
legislation as regards evidence of abuse and the question of
fees. I am also looking forward to the independent review, as
discussed in the debate, being published as soon as possible. The
Bill will strengthen the support that domestic abuse victims are
offered when using the CMS by allowing them to decide what
service type is best for their child maintenance case and their
circumstances, and I hope that it will progress through the House
with full support.
Question put and agreed to.
Bill accordingly read a Second time; to stand committed to a
Public Bill Committee (Standing Order No. 63).
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