Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what criteria the Child Maintenance Service uses to determine whether pensions contributions made by non-resident parents are reasonable when deciding whether to make a child maintenance payment variation on grounds of diversion of income.

The Child Maintenance Service can consider whether pension contributions made by the non-resident parent are reasonable if the parent with care has sufficient grounds for a variation application, based on diversion of income. Pension contributions can then be compared to the non-resident parent’s personal circumstances, such as their age and income, to determine whether they should be considered excessive.

The Service will always try to ensure that the maintenance calculation accurately reflects the non-resident parent’s ability to pay child maintenance. If pension contributions could be considered to be affecting support given to the child, the Service will investigate and take action if appropriate.