An MP has called for urgent government action to tackle economic abuse.
Horsham’s Liberal Democrat MP, John Milne, called for the action after warnings that systemic failures are putting survivors and children at risk.
Mr Milne said: "Economic abuse is a deeply damaging form of domestic abuse that too often goes unrecognised.
"Systemic failures are leaving victims trapped in cycles of control long after separation and putting children at risk.
"The government must act urgently to reform the system by strengthening enforcement and closing the loopholes that allow exploitation."
His comments follow new research from the charity Surviving Economic Abuse, which revealed that economic abuse plays a significant role in domestic homicide cases.
The analysis of more than 400 Domestic Homicide Reviews found that one person died every 19 days in cases involving economic abuse and intimate partner violence.
Mr Milne raised the findings with the Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls on March 23 2026.
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He called for stronger safeguards to ensure individuals can access child maintenance safely, including improved income assessments and the removal of the two per cent Collect and Pay surcharge.
He argued that these changes would help prevent survivors from being forced into contact with their abusers.
The MP also joined other Liberal Democrat MPs in writing to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
The group raised concerns about weak enforcement and called for the urgent introduction of long-promised reforms, including a clear timetable for change.
Sam Smethers, CEO of Surviving Economic Abuse, said: "Economic abuse is not just a money problem – it is central to coercive control, and it kills.
"Abusers weaponise systems, like the Child Maintenance Service (CMS), to control survivors and harm their children long after they have fled.
"Safe access to the CMS is a matter of life and death. We need long-awaited legislative reforms to be brought forward as soon as possible."
The charity warned in its report that public bodies, including the CMS, have repeatedly missed opportunities to identify and respond to economic abuse as a serious risk factor.
