Clause 21
10:15 am
Anne McGuire (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Minister for Disabled People), Department for Work and Pensions; Stirling, Labour)
I thank the hon. Gentlemen for tabling this group of amendments. First, I would like to address amendments Nos. 103 and 105, which would change the nature of the regulation-making powers from permissive to mandatory. Both amendments would force the Secretary of State to make regulations providing for appeals.
I hope that the Committee will accept that there is no question that we would not provide for a right of appeal, but I appreciate the point made by the hon. Member for Forest of Dean that as the clause says “may” instead of “shall”, the intention could be open to question. I will give the hon. Gentleman a second little taste of victory today—the issue has also been raised by Government Back Benchers. We certainly intend that the regulations will provide a right of appeal, and we Column Number 326 want to consider the two amendments further in the light of what may or shall be a misinterpretation, which could undermine our intention for the Bill. I hope that the hon. Gentleman will withdraw his amendment, given our commitment to consider whether there is sufficient clarity in the Bill.
Amendment No. 104 would give any person affected by the interim order stage of a lump sum deduction a right to appeal against the making of that interim order, which is a point raised by the hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey. He is right to highlight that in our eagerness over the policy intention of getting money quickly to the parent with care and the child, we must be clear that there is fairness in the system and that the system is robust. I hope that I can allay his fears and those of other hon. Members by explaining that safeguards are already in place on that provision.
An interim order acts to freeze an amount of funds before the application of the final order. That period of freezing allows the non-resident parent to make representations to the commission regarding whether all or part of the funds should be deducted under a final order. If a final order is made without considering those representations, the non-resident parent has the right to appeal to a magistrates court or, in Scotland, to the sheriff. In addition, during the freezing period the non-resident parent will have the ability to apply to the commission for funds to be released in certain circumstances. That will be provided for in regulations, and should the commission withhold consent for the release, the non-resident parent may again appeal.
Finally, amendment No. 122 raises an interesting point for discussion, but I respectfully suggest that it does not change the intent of the clause. The clause allows for regulations, which in turn will allow any party affected to appeal against the making of a current account deduction order. That includes the right to appeal against the terms of the order. Therefore, I hope that I can assure hon. Members that there are sufficient appeal rights in relation to current account deduction orders. As in earlier discussions, “current account” is the generic term that I will use. We feel that those appeal rights are fully provided for in the clause. I further reassure the hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey that there is a maximum amount that may be deducted by deduction orders, and the situation would be the same with a maximum deduction amount based on an assessed order, where arrears and a lump sum are to be taken into account.
In closing, it is also worth noting that there are separate appeal rights in respect of the maintenance calculation and that deduction orders will be used only when a non-resident parent has failed to pay. Furthermore, given that the commission cannot impose the final order stage of a lump sum deduction without first considering the representations that have been made, the safety nets to ensure that there is fairness in the system are there at all points of the process. Therefore, I ask the hon. Member for Forest of Dean to withdraw the amendment with the reassurance that we will consider the points that he has made.
Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
Clause 21 ordered to stand part of the Bill.
It being twenty-five minutes past Ten o’clock, The Chairman adjourned the Committee without Question put, pursuant to the Standing Order.
Adjourned till this day at half-past One o’clock.