Absent parents to pay maintenance

Press, 18 June 1983, Page 8

Absent parents to pay maintenance

Parliamentary reporter

The Government is looking for ways to get liable parents living in Australia to pay maintenance. At present New Zealand law on liable parents’ contributions is not enforceable in Australia, and the Social Welfare Department sees that as a weakness in the scheme. The Minister of Social Welfare, Mr Young, was believed to have raised the matter with Australian state and Federal Ministers in Brisbane yesterday, de-

partment officials said.

“We don’t know how many liable parents go to Australia,” said the department’s director of developmental services, Mr A. G. Nixon, “but we have been aware for a long time that it has been a problem in getting payments. We need the co-operation of the Australian state and Federal Ministers to close the gap.” About one in five parents who should be contributing under the scheme were unable to be traced by the department. Although some were “fairly adept at mak-

ing themselves scarce in New Zealand,” many also went to Australia, Mr Nixon said.

Although about $3O million was due for the year ended March, only $l3 million (44 per cent) was paid.

Mr Nixon said that New Zealand was the only country in the world with such a scheme, and that some of the Australian states were “seriously interested” in trying it. Mr Young told the annual conference of Australasian Ministers of Social Welfare yesterday that he wanted to increase the minimum parent contribution,

“The taxpayer is having to meet too much of the cost of family support when the non-custodial parent has the ability to pay more,” he said.

The minimum contribution is $lO, and is payable when a liable parent falls outside the formula used to set the amount payable. It was introduced last year, but no provision was made for an increase in the amount.