| Synopsis: |
Since it was established in 1993, the Child Support Agency (CSA) has consistently underperformed, plagued by enormous backlogs of unprocessed cases and uncollected maintenance. Where it works well, the Agency has secured regular contributions from non-resident parents and helped lift an estimated 100,000 children out of poverty. It has to administer complex assessment, collection and enforcement processes, and deal with complicated emotional, financial and legal issues to bring about a degree of financial stability for children and parents.Following on from a National Audit Office report ('Child Support Agency: Implementation of the Child Support Reforms (HC 1174)' - ISBN 0102938695, available below) published in June 2006, the Committee's report examines the implementation of child support reforms, focusing on why the problems in implementing the reforms arose, the impact on the quality of service, the remedial action taken by the CSA, and the lessons learnt.The report finds that implementing the reforms has cost the taxpayer GBP 539 million since 2000, with plans for a further GBP 320 million to improve service levels over the next three years.However, the money spent has failed to deliver improvements in efficiency and quality of service, and the Agency still performs less effectively than its counterparts in Australia and New Zealand, with higher average costs per case and lower rates of compliance.The Government published its White Paper ('A New System of Child Maintenance (Cm. 6979)' - ISBN 0101697929) in December 2006, drawing on the recommendations made by Sir David Henshaw in his July 2006 report (Recovering Child Support: Routes to Responsibility - Sir David Henshaw's Report to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Cm. 6894)' - ISBN 010168942X, both of which are available below). Amongst the reforms announced, the Government will replace the CSA with a new organisation, the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission (C-MEC) by 2008. |