Absent parents across Bradford owe more than £14 million to their children in support payments, new figures have revealed.

According to Government figures placed in the Commons library, absent mothers or fathers owe £14.2m in payments for the upkeep of their offspring.

The latest figures, which relate to the situation in June this year, are up 20 per cent on the previous year and show the huge problem ministers face getting parents to pay up. The debt in June last year stood at £11.795m across the district.

Absent parents in the parliamentary constituency of Bradford South owe £3.566m, Bradford North children are owed £3.385m, a further £2.66m is uncollected in Bradford West, £2.45m in Keighley and a further £2.136m in Shipley. The figures undermine claims by ministers they are getting a grip over the chaotic child support system. Nationally about £4 billion is owed.

The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission replaced the Child Support Agency last month. It has more powers to try to enforce maintenance payments, including asking courts to withdraw passports. It believes about £2bn can be recovered – meaning only half of the debt would be paid to Bradford children.

The CSA has collected and arranged more than £7.5bn in child maintenance over its 15-year life, with more than £1bn collected in the last year alone.

MPs have been critical of the old CSA for years, with the powerful Commons public accounts committee branding it “one of the greatest public administration disasters of recent times” after a new IT system caused havoc and created a huge backlog.

Bradford North MP Terry Rooney said: “It is ironic the CSA was wound up when it had never been more efficient. But as these figures show lone parents have been failed over many years. The new system is still on trial and I wish it every success but it has a difficult history to overcome.”

Keighley MP Ann Cryer said the absent parents who do not pay should be ashamed of themselves. She added: “Many people are not only divorcing their wives but their children and it should never be about the children, all differences should be kept between the adults.”

Shipley MP Philip Davies said the CSA was a shambles.

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