Commentary on Sections Collection and enforcement Section 21: Deduction from earnings orders: the liable person’s earnings
125.This section replaces subsection (8) of section 31 of the Child Support Act 1991, and inserts a new subsection (9). The intent of the change is to define what will be considered as ‘earnings’ for the purpose of deduction from earnings orders.
126.Section 31 of the Child Support Act 1991 concerns deduction from earnings orders, and the existing subsection (8) provides that ‘earnings’ has such meaning as may be prescribed.
127.The definition in the new subsection (8) will include the following as earnings:
	wages or salary;
	payments by way of pensions including any annuity payable for the purpose of providing a pension;
	periodical payments which are compensation for loss of employment or reduced remuneration; and
	statutory sick pay.
128.The impact of this change is that all pension payments, whether as a result of a private or occupational pension scheme, will be included as earnings for the purposes of deduction from earnings orders.
129.The new subsection (9) sets out that for the purposes of sections 31 and 32 of the Child Support Act 1991, any person paying a sum covered by new subsection (8) to a liable person should be treated as their ‘employer’.