Tom Tugendhat MP: written questions
73 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Children: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 102781More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) driving licenses and (b) passports have been (i) suspended and (ii) disqualified as a result of child maintenance non payment in each of the last five years.
Answer: The 2012 child maintenance reforms are designed to increase cooperation between separated parents and to ensure that children receive appropriate financial support. Where family-based arrangements are not suitable, the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) oper...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 102780More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Maintenance Service cases involving cross border maintenance arrangements were (a) opened and (b) successfully enforced in each of the last five years.
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) defines cross-border maintenance arrangements to mean applications where one or more parties live outside the United Kingdom (UK).In the past five years, CMS has received no applications involving cross-border maintenan...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 102779More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Maintenance Service applications were closed as incomplete in each of the last five years.
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) plays a vital role in safeguarding the financial welfare of children by handling applications for maintenance. However, some applications are closed as incomplete, commonly due to missing or insufficient information.App...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 5 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 102778More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many cases have been closed by the Child Maintenance Service in each of the last five years; and what were the primary reasons for closure.
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) operates under statutory guidelines to ensure maintenance arrangements are managed effectively and remains committed to supporting parents and ensuring that child maintenance arrangements are fair, sustainable, and resp...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChild Maintenance Service: ReformDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 2 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 101762More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which international child maintenance systems his Department has reviewed in the last five years as comparators for reform of the Child Maintenance Service; and what key lessons were identified.
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service keeps international practice under review and draws on lessons from other systems where appropriate. In recent years, we have looked at approaches in countries including Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChild Maintenance Service: TrainingDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 2 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 101761More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training modules on domestic abuse and financial coercion are mandatory for Child Maintenance Service staff; and how many staff have completed that training in the last 12 months.
Answer: The Department for Work and Pensions take domestic abuse and financial coercion extremely seriously and ensures that all Child Maintenance Service (CMS) colleagues are equipped to provide appropriate support to customers.All CMS colleagues complete mandat...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 2 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 101760More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of paying parents using (a) cash-based and (b) undeclared income sources to avoid maintenance payments; and what steps the Child Maintenance Service is taking to
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) focuses on maximising compliance and identifying hidden earnings through measures such as datasharing with HMRC.Information about the paying parent's gross income is taken directly from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 2 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 101759More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Deduction from Earnings Orders and Deduction Orders from bank accounts are active.
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) uses Deduction from Earnings Orders and Deduction Orders from bank accounts to help ensure parents meet their maintenance responsibilities. The number of active orders varies over time as cases progress through complian...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChild Maintenance Service: StaffDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 2 Jan 2026AnsweredUIN 101758More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many staff the Child Maintenance Service employs; and what the average caseload is per caseworker in the (a) enforcement, (b) calculation and (c) complaints teams.
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) employs staff across a range of operational functions to support the effective administration of child maintenance arrangements. Staffing levels and the nature of work vary between business areas, including enforcement,...
Answered 13 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBrain Cancer: Medical TreatmentsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101418More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with NICE on the potential merits of innovative brain cancer treatments in Germany that are not currently available on the NHS.
Answer: My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has had no discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) on the potential merits of innovative brain cancer treatments in Germany that are not currently ...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordBrain Cancer: Medical TreatmentsDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101417More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the reasons people with brain cancer are seeking treatment outside the UK, particularly in Germany, including the trend in the level of such treatme
Answer: Ensuring patients have access to the latest and most effective treatment options is a top priority for the Government.That is why we are committed to supporting an innovative clinical research ecosystem in the United Kingdom so that patients in this count...
Answered 15 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101416More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the annual collection rate is for child maintenance under (a) Collect and Pay and (b) Direct Pay.
Answer: The Department regularly publishes Child Maintenance Service official statistics, with the latest statistics available to September 2025. Table 4 and Table 5 of the accompanying National tables provide information on the amount of child maintenance that s...
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101415More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of Child Maintenance Service delays and errors on child poverty levels and low-income households.
Answer: We know that children in separated families are poorer and more likely to live in poverty than those in non-separated families. Child maintenance payments through both statutory and non-statutory arrangements keep approximately 120,000 children out of pov...
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101414More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children are included in Child Maintenance Service cases in which the paying parent has been subject to three or more separate enforcement actions for non payment.
Answer: The information requested on the number of children in Child Maintenance Service cases which have been subject to three or more separate enforcement actions is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101413More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Maintenance Service cases in each of the last five years have had a safeguarding flag applied due to domestic abuse concerns; and how many of those cases involved Collect and Pay arrangem
Answer: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. The Child Maintenance Serviced (CMS) takes the issue of domestic abuse very seriously and is committed to ensuring victims and survivors of abuse get t...
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 18 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 101412More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of Child Maintenance Service safeguarding procedures for parents who have experienced domestic abuse; and whether changes have been made to those procedures r
Answer: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) takes the issue of domestic abuse very seriously and is committed to ensuring victims and survivors of abuse get the help and support they need to use the CMS safely. The CMS has substantially strengthened its procedure...
Answered 6 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99821More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the backlog of Child Maintenance Service enforcement cases and increase compliance.
Answer: The Department does not have a backlog of Child Maintenance Service (CMS) enforcement cases. All cases requiring enforcement action are being actively progressed in accordance with established operational procedures.The Department continues to strengthen ...
Answered 7 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99820More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Maintenance Service cases involve missed payments for more than three months before enforcement action begins; and what factors account for delays.
Answer: The information requested on the time from missed payments to enforcement action is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) remains committed to ensuring that children receive the fina...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99819More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Maintenance Service enforcement actions in the most recent year for which data is available resulted in (a) full recovery of arrears, (b) partial recovery of arrears and (c) no recovery o
Answer: The information requested on the number of Child Maintenance Service (CMS) enforcement actions that resulted in full, partial or no recovery of arrears, broken down by type of enforcement action, is not readily available, and to provide it would incur dis...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordDebt CollectionDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99818More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of enforcement, including the recovery rate following (a) liability orders, (b) bailiff action and (c) deduction orders.
Answer: The Department monitors the effectiveness of Child Maintenance Service (CMS) enforcement processes to ensure compliance and support the collection of maintenance owed to children. The information requested on assessments of the effectiveness of individual...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 15 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 99817More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many paying parents have a nil assessment for child maintenance, including by each reason for a nil assessment.
Answer: The information requested on the number of paying parents with a nil assessment, broken down by each reason for that assessment, is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. A nil assessment for Child Maintenance applies o...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordHospices: StaffDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 10 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98817More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding provisions are being put in place for hospice care, in the context of rising costs of living and changing needs of the staff.
Answer: Palliative care services are included in the list of services an integrated care board (ICB) must commission. This promotes a more consistent national approach and supports commissioners in prioritising palliative care and end of life care. To support ICB...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98427More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of child maintenance owed is collected within (a) 3, (b) 6 and (c) 12 months of assessment.
Answer: The Department for Work and Pensions does not currently publish statistics on what proportion of child maintenance owed is collected within (a) 3, (b) 6 and (c) 12 months of assessment. Therefore, the information requested is not readily available and to ...
Answered 5 Jan 2026
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98426More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of the total value of child maintenance arrears has been outstanding for (a) under 12 months, (b) 1 to 3 years, (c) 3 to 7 years and (d) more than 7 years.
Answer: The Department publishes annual accounts for the client funds relating to the statutory child maintenance schemes. The latest accounts for financial year ending 2025 provide relevant figures in Table 1: Analysis of unpaid maintenance by year they originat...
Answered 18 Dec 2025
Original Parliament recordChildren: MaintenanceDepartment for Work and PensionsTabled 9 Dec 2025AnsweredUIN 98425More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of child maintenance arrears that are (a) likely to be recovered in full, (b) partly recoverable and (c) unlikely to be recovered.
Answer: Administrative child maintenance schemes have operated in the UK since 1993. This response addresses the position of arrears under the 2012 child maintenance scheme, which has managed new applications since December 2012. There are legislative differences...
Answered 15 Dec 2025
Original Parliament record
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