Source · Select Committees · Work and Pensions Committee
Recommendation 9
9
Deferred
Paragraph: 45
Seek legislative authority to process partial Universal Credit deductions for child maintenance arrears.
Recommendation
The Department should seek, as part of any future legislative change in the Child Maintenance Service system, the authority to process partial deductions from Universal Credit for child maintenance arrears.
Government Response Summary
The government commits to amending legislation for partial deductions when it can be implemented but states there are no estimated timescales as Universal Credit development is currently focused on other priorities.
Paragraph Reference:
45
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
Modifications regarding partial deductions would require changes to the UC system, which is challenging, given the need to safeguard the incomes of vulnerable customers, during the process of migration of customers onto UC from legacy benefits. We will ensure the legislation is amended as necessary when the change can be implemented. UC Delivery teams are currently working at full capacity on Fraud and Error improvements, and development is ongoing to automate more processes to allow expansion of move to UC. The build effort required for this change will continue to be considered at regular intervals to see when it can be accommodated but there are no estimated timescales currently. We will continue to work with our UC colleagues to consider the best ways to improve the operation of child maintenance payments within UC to maximise the amount of child maintenance paid.