LC: Attachment of Income Order (Amendment) Bill 2001

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Following is the speech by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr W K Lam, in moving the second reading of the Attachment of Income Order (Amendment) Bill 2001 in the Legislative Council today (April 4):

Madam President,

I move that the Attachment of Income Order (Amendment) Bill 2001 be read a second time.

The purpose of the Bill is to relax the circumstances in which attachment of income orders can be made so as to enhance the effectiveness of the Attachment of Income Order Scheme in addressing the difficulties encountered by some divorced or separated persons in collecting or enforcing maintenance payments.

Background

An Inter-departmental Working Group reviewed the law and administrative measures affecting maintenance payees and published a report in May 2000. The recommendations in the report have been accepted by the Administration and the present Bill is to implement an important recommendation contained in the report.

An attachment of income order (AIO) is a court order that requires an "income source" (e.g. the employer or tenant of the maintenance payer) to deduct maintenance payments from the maintenance payer's income and to pay the deductions direct to the maintenance payee. It enables the maintenance payee to receive punctual payments without being subject to the payer's mercy. The AIO Scheme commenced operation in April 1998. In the past two calendar years, however, only 35 AIOs were issued.

After studying the AIO Scheme, the Working Group concluded that it had not been more widely used mainly because the circumstances in which an AIO could be issued were restrictive. At present, the court can issue an AIO only where a maintenance payer has failed to make any payment without reasonable excuse. Such restriction has undermined the effectiveness of the Scheme. The Working Group recommended relaxing the circumstances in which AIOs could be made.

On the other hand, when considering AIO applications, the court now has to comply with the elaborate procedures laid down in the Attachment of Income Order Rules. In some cases, such requirement has unnecessarily protracted the time taken to make an AIO. The Working Group recommended that the court be given flexibility in applying the Rules.

In view of the above, we propose to amend existing Ordinances to enhance the effectiveness of the AIO Scheme in addressing the difficulties encountered by the concerned parties in collecting or enforcing maintenance payments.

The Amendment Bill

The Bill seeks to amend three Ordinances that provide for maintenance payments, namely the Guardianship of Minors Ordinance, the Separation and Maintenance Orders Ordinance, and the Matrimonial Proceedings and Property Ordinance. The Bill proposes that, subject to the conditions that there is income capable of being attached and a maintenance order is in place, an AIO can be made where -

(a) the court is satisfied that the maintenance payer has without reasonable excuse failed to make any payment pursuant to a maintenance order; or

(b) the court has reasonable grounds to believe that the maintenance payer will not make full and punctual payment in compliance with a maintenance order; or

The Bill also stipulates that an AIO may in future be made in the same hearing in which a maintenance order is made or varied. It may also be made by the court on its own motion or on the application by the maintenance payer, or payee, or both.

In addition, the Bill provides that the Attachment of Income Order Rules may empower the court to dispense with or relax any procedures or abridge any time limits specified in the Rules, when the court is satisfied that it is fair and reasonable to do so in the circumstances of a particular case.

All in all, the Bill seeks to relax undue restrictions imposed upon the AIO Scheme by the existing legislation and to give the court flexibility in applying the relevant legal procedures, in order that the Scheme can more effectively assist maintenance payees in addressing the problem of maintenance arrears.

Madam President, with these remarks, I recommend this Bill to Members.

End/Wednesday, April 4, 2001

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