09 January 2008 – Stephen Geraghty announced as first Commissioner of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission

 The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Peter Hain, today announced the appointment of Stephen Geraghty as Commissioner Designate of the new Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.

Stephen Geraghty brings extensive knowledge and experience from the private sector and from his current role as Chief Executive of the Child Support Agency (CSA), which has seen major improvements under his tenure.

Since taking over the CSA in 2005 he has already put many improvements in place resulting in the number of children in receipt of maintenance or with a maintenance arrangement in place rising by 129,000 to 674,000. The CSA is also on course to achieve its £970m target for maintenance collections by March 2008.

Having driven radical change at the CSA Stephen Geraghty’s major challenge in the transition period will be realising the potential of the new legislation to secure more money for more children and ensuring that the freedom that comes from CMEC’s independent status is fully exploited.

Peter Hain said:

“I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Stephen Geraghty as the Commissioner Designate of the new Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.  He has a proven track record in improving the CSA’s performance since his appointment in 2005. He has also been heavily involved in working with Sir David Henshaw in the policy review that led to the creation of the new commission and in developing the new legislation currently before Parliament. I believe his appointment - alongside that of Janet Paraskeva as the Chair Designate - will give the Commission an experienced and committed leadership well equipped for the vital task of tacking child poverty.”

Janet Paraskeva who was appointed Chair Designate in November said:

“I very much look forward to working closely with Stephen - his knowledge, drive and experience will be invaluable in helping to tackle the challenges that the Commission will face.”

Stephen Geraghty said:

“I am delighted to have been appointed as the first Commissioner of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission. The Commission marks a new era in child maintenance. It gives us the operational freedom to develop new services to support parents to take more responsibility for their children. The passage of the child maintenance bill through Parliament will, at last, give us the policy framework needed to make a difference to more children. But the operational improvements we have made must continue to underpin the transition into the new Commission.”

Notes to Editors

1. Stephen Geraghty has been the Chief Executive of the Child Support Agency since 2005.
2. His previous roles include Managing Director of Green Flag Group and UK Insurance, Managing Director, Assistance Division of Direct Line Group and Managing Director of Direct Line Financial Services.
3. The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill was introduced into the House of Commons in June and has now completed its Commons stages. Stephen Geraghty’s appointment commenced on 1 January 2008 and will be on a designate basis pending Parliamentary approval of the Bill.
4. Stephen Geraghty’s appointment was made on merit following an open competition for the post.
5. In April 2006 the CSA launched a three year Operational Improvement Plan to transform service delivery to its clients. The plan, developed from a baseline that pinpointed the low point in the Agency’s performance, reported at its halfway stage in September 2007. Tables below provide details of the Agency’s progress against targets:

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