Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the answer of 21 July 2026 to UIN 18353, if he will set a timeframe for legislating on the removal of Direct Pay and moving of all cases to a single service, in accordance with the Child Support Collection (Domestic Abuse) Act 2023.

The Government remains committed to legislating to remove Direct Pay and move to a single child maintenance payment service where the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) monitors and transfers payments.

Implementing this reform requires primary legislation, and the timing of any legislation will depend on securing Parliamentary time.

In the meantime, the CMS is strengthening its support for victim/survivors by making it easier for parents to switch to the Collect and Pay service through our improvements to the ‘change to service type’ process. The CMS is also being clearer in its communication about what support is available for victims and survivors of domestic abuse and how to access it.

The CMS is also working with stakeholders to understand what additional support it can give to victims and survivors of abuse across the CMS customer journey.