I can assure all your readers that the Child Support Agency in Northern Ireland continues to pursue those non-resident parents who are failing to make agreed payments.
If voluntary agreements are not sustained, the Agency requires employers to make deductions from pay. We will continue to use the courts to secure enforcement orders for the debt and, if necessary have assets seized and disposed of to meet the debt. We are also making arrangements to use debt collection agencies to collect debt on our behalf.
Our existing powers allow us to apply to courts to confiscate driving licences and, in line with the Great Britain Agency, we are considering what further powers would be helpful in collecting debt - confiscating passports and/or curfew orders, for example.