To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will bring forward legislation to write off Child Support Agency arrears; and if he will make a statement. (102304)

I refer the hon. Member to paragraphs 5.36-5.37 on page 78 of the child maintenance White Paper “A new system of child maintenance”.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff were employed by the Child Support Agency in each of the last 18 months. (112895)

The administration of the Child Support Agency is the matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Gentleman with the information requested.

Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 31st January 2007:

In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.

You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many staff were employed by the Child Support Agency in each of the last 18 months. [112895]

The information requested is shown in the Table below.

I hope you find this information helpful.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps have been taken to improve communications with clients of the Child Support Agency so that they can better understand the progress of their case as part of the Operational Improvement Plan for the CSA. (113534)

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Gentleman with the information requested.

Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 31 January 2007:

In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.

You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps have been taken to improve communications with clients of the Child Support Agency so that they can better understand the progress of their case as part of the Operational Improvement Plan for the CSA. [113534]

As part of the Operational Improvement Plan the Child Support Agency has already started a significant programme of work to improve its client communications. An audit has identified clear opportunities for improvement and, as a result, a “Client Journey” is currently being developed which will help to ensure that communications are consistent, accurate and provide clients with the information they need at the appropriate time. This will help to make the case handling process clearer and to ensure that clients are kept up to date with what is happening.

In addition some essential improvements have been made to the main letters that are generated by CS2, the Agency’s new computer system, and the leaflets that accompany letters are in the process of being re-written to make them clearer for clients. Some initial changes have been made to the Child Support Agency website including a new options section for prospective clients who are not in receipt of benefits.

In the future, all client communications will be reviewed and improved as required. This will include significant changes to letters generated by the new computer system and a comprehensive review and re-write of all manually produced communications; a major upgrade of the website and; in the coming year a review of the Agency’s handling of its communication by telephone in order to identify ways to improve the experience for clients.

I hope you find this answer helpful.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps the Child Support Agency is taking to increase parental compliance. (102254)

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Gentleman the information requested.

Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 31st January 2007:

In reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.

You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Child Support Agency is taking to increase parental compliance.

The Operational Improvement Plan announced in Parliament on 9th February 2006 and launched in April 2006 aims, over the next three years, to improve our service to clients, increase the amount of money we collect and achieve greater compliance from non-resident parents. The Operational Improvement Plan can be accessed at the following location: http://www.csa.gov.uk/pdf/english/reports/oip.pdf.

The Government has also released The Child Maintenance White Paper: A New System of Child Maintenance, published on the 13th December. The White Paper sets out proposals for; greater simplification of the assessment and compliance policy; and strengthening enforcement powers still further. The White Paper can be found at http://www.dwp.gov.uk/childmaintenance/csa_report.pdf.

I hope you find this answer helpful.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what total amount of additional unpaid maintenance has been recovered to date as a result of the Child Support Agency’s Operational Improvement plan; and if he will make a statement; (112663)

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how much unpaid maintenance has been recovered through the Child Support Agency’s Operational Improvement plan; and if he will make a statement. (112904)

I refer the hon. Members to the reply given to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 18 December 2006, Official Report, column 1565W.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications to the magistrates court were made to facilitate a driving disqualification by the Child Support Agency in each year for which figures are available; and how many of those applications were (a) successful and (b) issued on a suspended basis in each year. (113563)

The administration of the Child Support Agency is the matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Gentleman with the information requested.