A father has been taken to court for owing £42,000 in child support payments.
He was one of 32 parents to be brought before Brighton Magistrates’ Court owing almost a quarter of a million pounds in child maintenance debts.
The parents could face jail over money they had been ordered to pay towards the care of their children, with debts ranging from £700 to tens of thousands of pounds.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) applied for liability orders in the cases of the 32 mothers and fathers last week.
The Government is cracking down on Child Support Agency debts.
A DWP spokesman said: “£250,000 of child maintenance debt was enforced through the Brighton court in two days.
“Scores of parents with child maintenance debts continue to face tough sanctions, including possible imprisonment, for not financially supporting their children.
“Child maintenance debt totalling almost £1m is being pursued through the courts across the South East this month alone. The Government is determined to collect as much Child Support Agency debt as possible ahead of major reforms.”
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