PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(12 February 2020)

The Child Maintenance Service does not fine Paying Parents for not paying their child maintenance. They do however recover the unpaid child maintenance through the use of enforcements actions such as deductions from earrings orders, deduction orders and civil enforcement. In cases where the Child Maintenance Service believe the Paying Parent can pay, but are refusing to do so they can apply to the courts to send the Paying Parents to prison, disqualifying them from holding or obtaining a passport or driving licence. The figures described can be found in the quarterly National Tables for the Child Maintenance Service statistics (data to September 2019), Table 12 (“Enforcement Actions”). This is available here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-statistics-data-to-september-2019-experimental