Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what criteria were used to determine the Child Maintenance Service's enforcement charges, including liability orders, lump sum reduction orders, regular deduction orders and deduction from earnings orders and requests.

Enforcement charges are intended to encourage parents to comply with their commitments, as well as to help off-set the administrative cost of taking enforcement action. The enforcement charges are lower than the actual cost to the Department for taking the action. To charge the full cost could have an adverse effect and encourage non-compliance, as well as being potentially disproportionate to the size of the debt. The levels are designed to be proportionate to the type, and seriousness, of the order that is being pursued.

Enforcement charges are only collected once the ongoing maintenance and any arrears due have, been paid.