Simon Danczuk not paying child maintenance, claims ex-wife

Simon Danczuk MP

Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk has not paid his child maintenance payment this month and has been avoiding the Child Support Agency (CSA) for six months, says his ex-wife.

Sonia Rossington, Mr Danczuk’s first wife, has stated that he has decided not to pay the monthly amount to her following their son going to university.

Speaking to Rochdale Online, Mrs Rossington said: “He hasn’t paid his child maintenance this month and when I contacted him about it, he said that because his eldest son George went to university in September, he doesn’t need to pay it because he would be paying double this month, which isn’t the case.”

Mr Danczuk and Mrs Rossington have two children together – 18-year old George and a 13-year-old daughter.

She added: “His daughter is 13-years-old and this is not something I discuss with her, so she is unaware that there is a problem.”

Mrs Rossington also states that Mr Danczuk has not declared his additional earnings to the CSA and that they have been trying to contact him regarding the matter for at least six months.

She said: “The CSA has been chasing him for the last six months because he hasn’t declared his additional earnings and that is something he has to do. I was told that this case was under review because he needed to declare his earnings and he hasn’t.”

Mr Danczuk’s salary as an MP is £74,000 and it is understood that his additional earnings from outside interests have added up to over £33,000 so far this year.

“It is frustrating because I don’t know when I am going to have a payment from Simon to help support his daughter. This may be just one payment to some people but to me, that money helps me with things like paying the mortgage and the bills. I don’t have any additional income except for my wage so this money helps with things like bills and food,” added Mrs Rossington.

Asked to comment on the matter, Mr Danczuk said: “This is a private family matter resulting from a simple misunderstanding over finances. It is regrettable that this has been reported publicly and I do not feel it is appropriate to comment on the issue any further.”

Before Mr Danczuk commented on the issue, Mrs Rossington predicted what he would say.

She said: “He will say that this is a private matter and shouldn’t be aired in public but it needs to be made clear that it shouldn’t be one precedent for him and another for someone else. Does this mean that all absent fathers across the borough can get away with not paying their child maintenance because he doesn’t?”

It is understood that Mr Danczuk has been told that he must continue with the payments to Mrs Rossington.

Mr Danczuk has also previously refused to contribute towards the cost of his son's university accommodation:

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/98063/simon-danczuk-refuses-to-help-with-the-cost-of-his-sons-university-accommodation