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This petition was submitted during the 2019 to 2024 Parliament

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Closed Non-payment of child maintenance a criminal offence with custodial penalties

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To make non-payment of child maintenance a criminal offence, with custodial penalties for offenders.

We believe current rules for non-payment of child maintenance do not hold non-paying parents fully responsible for their actions.

I believe that the Child Maintenance Service are failing parents who are not receiving the child maintenance they are due. Non-paying parents owe millions of pounds.

If a receiving parent can't afford to provide for their child they could face charges of neglect. Non-paying parents should face criminal penalties for failing to support their child, as this is also neglecting the child.

By making non-payment a criminal offence the police could take action against non-paying parents, hopefully helping ensure child maintenance is paid.

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    If this petition gets 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in Parliament.

    This petition will stay open until 20 September 2023.