I beg to move

That, in accordance with Standing Order 33(4), the period referred to in Standing Order 33(2) be extended to 13 December 2024, in relation to the Committee Stage of the Child Support Enforcement Bill.

The Business Committee has agreed that there will be no time limit on the debate. I call the Chairperson, Mr Colm Gildernew, to open the debate on the motion.

Go raibh míle maith agat, a Phríomh-LeasCheann Comhairle.

[Translation: Thank you very much, Principal Deputy Speaker.]

I request Members' support to extend the Committee Stage of the Child Support Enforcement Bill to 13 December 2024. I recognise that it is a short Bill. Nevertheless, it demands the same level of scrutiny as any other Bill, due to the changes that it will bring about in the operation of the child maintenance scheme.

By way of a reminder, Members, given the summer recess, the Bill is aimed at improving the effectiveness of child support services in the North and focuses on three key areas. The first is strengthening enforcement powers. The Bill enhances the enforcement measures available to ensure that non-residential parents meet their child support obligations. That includes powers for the Child Maintenance Service to take stronger actions to collect overdue payments. The second area is improving services. The Bill aims to make the process of managing and collecting child support more efficient and user-friendly. That will involve streamlining procedures and potentially introducing new mechanisms for dealing with non-compliance. The third area is support for families. The Bill includes provision to better support families in managing child support arrangements, ensuring that the system is fair and responsive to the needs of parents and children. Overall, the Bill seeks to ensure that child support is more reliably collected and that families receive the financial support that they are entitled to.

At Second Stage, I highlighted the fact that the Bill will align child support enforcement mechanisms here with those already established in England, Scotland and Wales under the Child Support (Enforcement) Act 2023 and that the Committee had been informed by officials that the alignment would ensure parity and improve the efficiency of the Child Maintenance Service in securing maintenance for qualifying children.

The Committee welcomes the intent behind the proposed changes, and our call for evidence is now live on Citizen Space until 4 October. We have identified a number of stakeholders from whom we wish to take evidence, and we have written directly to organisations that might be affected by the legislation. We very much encourage people to engage with us as we go through the Committee Stage into the autumn term.

I ask the House to agree the extension to provide the Committee with additional time to scrutinise the Bill so that we can do our best to ensure that it is as thorough and considered as possible.

No other Members are seeking to speak on the Committee motion, so I will put the Question.

Question put and agreed to. Resolved:

That, in accordance with Standing Order 33(4), the period referred to in Standing Order 33(2) be extended to 13 December 2024, in relation to the Committee Stage of the Child Support Enforcement Bill.