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Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland


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2002 No. 79

HOUSING; RATES; SOCIAL SECURITY

The Social Security (Loss of Benefit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002

  Made 6th March 2002 
  Coming into operation 1st April 2002 

The Department for Social Development, in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 74(3) to (6) of, and paragraph 9 of Schedule 2 to, the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1998[1] and now vested in it[2], and sections 6(3) to (6), 7(3) and (4), 8(2) to (5) and 9(1) and (2) of the Social Security Fraud Act (Northern Ireland) 2001[3] and of all other powers enabling it in that behalf, by this statutory rule which contains only regulations made by virtue of, or consequential upon, that Act, hereby makes the following Regulations:



PART I

GENERAL

Citation, commencement and interpretation
     1.  - (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Loss of Benefit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002 and shall come into operation on 1st April 2002.

    (2) In these Regulations - 

    (3) Expressions used in these Regulations which are defined either for the purposes of the Jobseekers Order or the Jobseeker's Allowance Regulations shall have the same meaning as for the purposes of that Order or, as the case may be, those Regulations.

Disqualification period
     2.  - (1) Subject to paragraph (2), the first day of the disqualification period for the purposes of section 6(6) of the Act shall be - 

    (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), the first day of the disqualification period shall be no later than 3 years and 28 days after the date of the conviction of the offender for the benefit offence in the later proceedings referred to in section 6(1) of the Act and section 6(9) of the Act (date of conviction and references to conviction) shall apply for the purposes of this paragraph as it applies for the purposes of section 6 of the Act.

    (3) In this regulation, "the determination day" means the day on which the Department determines that a restriction under - 



PART II

REDUCTIONS

Reduction of income support
    
3.  - (1) Subject to paragraphs (2) to (4), any payment of income support which falls to be made to an offender in respect of any week in the disqualification period, or to an offender's family member in respect of any week in the relevant period, shall be reduced - 

of the applicable amount of the offender in respect of a single claimant for income support on the first day of the disqualification period or, as the case may be, on the first day of the relevant period, and specified in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 2 to the Income Support Regulations[12].

    (2) Payment shall not be reduced under paragraph (1) to below 10 pence per week.

    (3) A reduction under paragraph (1) shall, if it is not a multiple of 5p, be rounded to the nearest such multiple or, if it is a multiple of 2.5p but not of 5p, to the next lower multiple of 5p.

    (4) A payment of income support shall not be reduced as provided in paragraph (1) in respect of any week in the disqualification period in respect of which that payment of income support is subject to a restriction imposed pursuant to section 53 or 54 of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act (Northern Ireland) 2000 (loss of benefit provisions)[13].

    (5) Where the rate of income support payable to an offender or an offender's family member changes, the rules set out in paragraphs (1) to (4) for a reduction in the benefit payable shall be applied to the new rate and any adjustment to the reduction shall take effect from the beginning of the first benefit week to commence following the change.

    (6) In this regulation "benefit week" shall have the same meaning as in regulation 2(1) of the Income Support Regulations[14].

Reduction of joint-claim jobseeker's allowance
     4. In respect of any part of the disqualification period when section 7(2) of the Act does not apply, the reduced rate of joint-claim jobseeker's allowance payable to the member of that couple who is not the offender shall be - 



PART III

HARDSHIP

Meaning of "person in hardship"
     5.  - (1) In this Part, a "person in hardship" means, for the purposes of regulation 6, a person, other than a person to whom paragraph (3) or (4) applies, where - 

    (2) Except in a case to which paragraph (3) or (4) applies, a person shall, for the purposes of regulation 7, be deemed to be a person in hardship where, after taking account of the factors set out in paragraph (5) in so far as they are appropriate to the particular circumstances of the case, the Department is satisfied that he or his partner will suffer hardship unless a jobseeker's allowance is paid to him.

    (3) In paragraphs (1) and (2), a person shall not be deemed to be a person in hardship - 

    (4) Paragraph (1)(h) shall not apply in a case where the person being cared for resides in a residential care home or nursing home.

    (5) Factors which, for the purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2), the Department is to take into account in determining whether the person is a person in hardship are - 

    (6) In determining the resources available to that person's family under paragraph (5)(b), any training premium or top-up payment paid pursuant to the Employment and Training Act shall be disregarded.

Circumstances in which an income-based jobseeker's allowance is payable to a person who is a person in hardship
     6.  - (1) This regulation applies to a person in hardship within the meaning of regulation 5(1) and is subject to the provisions of regulations 8 and 9.

    (2) An income-based jobseeker's allowance shall be payable to a person in hardship even though section 6(2) of the Act prevents payment of a jobseeker's allowance to the offender or section 8 of the Act prevents payment of a jobseeker's allowance to an offender's family member but the allowance shall be payable under this paragraph only if and so long as the claimant satisfies the conditions for entitlement to an income-based jobseeker's allowance.

Further circumstances in which an income-based jobseeker's allowance is payable to a person who is a person in hardship
    
7.  - (1) This regulation applies to a person in hardship within the meaning of regulation 5(2) and is subject to the provisions of regulations 8 and 9.

    (2) An income-based jobseeker's allowance shall be payable to a person in hardship even though section 6(2) of the Act prevents payment of a jobseeker's allowance to the offender or section 8 of the Act prevents payment of a jobseeker's allowance to an offender's family member but the allowance shall not be payable under this paragraph - 

and shall be payable thereafter only if and so long as the claimant satisfies the conditions for entitlement to an income-based jobseeker's allowance.

Conditions for payment of an income-based jobseeker's allowance
    
8.  - (1) An income-based jobseeker's allowance shall not be payable in accordance with regulation 6 or 7 except where the claimant has - 

    (2) The completed and signed form shall be delivered by the claimant to such office as the Department may specify.

Provision of information
    
9. For the purpose of section 6(4)(b) of the Act, the offender, and for the purpose of section 8(4)(b) of the Act, the offender or any member of his family, shall provide to the Department information as to the circumstances of the person alleged to be in hardship.

Applicable amount in hardship cases
    
10.  - (1) The weekly applicable amount of a person to whom an income-based jobseeker's allowance is payable in accordance with this Part shall be reduced by a sum equivalent to 40 per cent. or, in a case where the claimant or any other member of his family is either pregnant or seriously ill, 20 per cent. of the following amount - 

    (2) A reduction under paragraph (1) shall, if it is not a multiple of 5p, be rounded to the nearest such multiple or, if it is a multiple of 2.5p but not of 5p, to the next lower multiple of 5p.



PART IV

HARDSHIP FOR JOINT-CLAIM COUPLES

Application of Part and meaning of "couple in hardship"
    
11.  - (1) This Part applies in respect of any part of the disqualification period when section 7(2) of the Act would otherwise apply.

    (2) In this Part, a "couple in hardship" means, for the purposes of regulation 13, a joint-claim couple, other than a couple to whom paragraph (4) or (5) applies, who are claiming a jobseeker's allowance jointly where at least one member of that couple is an offender and where - 

    (3) Except in the case to which paragraph (4) or (5) applies, a joint-claim couple shall, for the purposes of regulation 14, be deemed to be a couple in hardship where the Department is satisfied, after taking account of the factors set out in paragraph (6) in so far as they are appropriate to the particular circumstances of the case, that the couple will suffer hardship unless a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance is paid.

    (4) In paragraphs (2) and (3), a joint-claim couple shall not be deemed to be a "couple in hardship" - 

    (5) Paragraph (2)(e) shall not apply in a case where the person being cared for resides in a residential care home or nursing home.

    (6) Factors which, for the purposes of paragraphs (2) and (3), the Department is to take into account in determining whether a joint-claim couple will suffer hardship are - 

    (7) In determining the resources available to the offender's family under paragraph (6)(b), any training premium or top-up payment paid pursuant to the Employment and Training Act shall be disregarded.

Circumstances in which a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance is payable where a joint-claim couple is a couple in hardship
     12.  - (1) This regulation applies where a joint-claim couple is a couple in hardship within the meaning of regulation 11(2) and is subject to the provisions of regulations 14 and 15.

    (2) A joint-claim jobseeker's allowance shall be payable to a couple in hardship even though section 7(2) of the Act prevents payment of a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance to the couple or section 7(3) of the Act reduces the amount of a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance payable to the couple but the allowance shall be payable under this paragraph only if and for so long as - 

Further circumstances in which a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance is payable to a couple in hardship
     13.  - (1) This regulation applies to a couple in hardship falling within regulation 11(3) and is subject to the provisions of regulations 14 and 15.

    (2) A joint-claim jobseeker's allowance shall be payable to a couple in hardship even though section 7(2) of the Act prevents payment of a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance to the couple or section 7(3) of the Act reduces the amount of a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance payable to the couple but the allowance - 

Conditions for payment of a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance
    
14.  - (1) A joint-claim jobseeker's allowance shall not be payable in accordance with regulation 12 or 13 except where either member of the couple has - 

    (2) The completed and signed form shall be delivered by a member of the couple to such office as the Department may specify.

Provision of information
    
15. For the purposes of section 7(4)(b) of the Act, a member of the couple shall provide to the Department information as to the circumstances of the alleged hardship of the couple.

Applicable amount of joint-claim couple in hardship cases
    
16.  - (1) The weekly applicable amount of a couple to whom a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance is payable in accordance with this Part shall be reduced by a sum equivalent to 40 per cent. or, in a case where a member of the joint-claim couple is either pregnant of seriously ill or where a member of the joint-claim couple is a member of a polygamous marriage and one of those members is either pregnant or seriously ill, 20 per cent. of the following amount - 

    (2) A reduction under paragraph (1) shall, if it is not a multiple of 5p, be rounded to the nearest such multiple or, if it is a multiple of 2.5p but not of 5p, to the next lower multiple of 5p.



PART V

HOUSING BENEFIT

Circumstances where a reduced amount of housing benefit is payable
    
17.  - (1) Subject to regulation 18, any payment of housing benefit which falls to be made to an offender in respect of any week in the disqualification period or to an offender's family member in respect of any week in the relevant period shall be reduced - 

of the amount which is or, where he is not the claimant or is not single, would be applicable to the offender in respect of a single claimant for those benefits on the first day of the disqualification period or, where the payment falls to be made to an offender's family member, on the first day of the relevant period and specified in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 2 to the Housing Benefit Regulations[24].

    (2) A reduction under paragraph (1) shall, if it is not a multiple of 5p, be rounded to the nearest such multiple or, if it is a multiple of 2.5p but not of 5p, to the next lower multiple of 5p.

    (3) Where the rate of housing benefit payable to a claimant changes, the rules set out in paragraphs (1) and (2) for a reduction in the benefit payable shall be applied to the new rate and any adjustment to the reduction shall take effect from the beginning of the first benefit week to commence for the claimant following the change.

    (4) In this regulation "benefit week" shall have the same meaning as in regulation 2(1) of the Housing Benefit Regulations.

Circumstances where housing benefit is payable
     18. Regulation 17 shall not apply and housing benefit shall be payable to an offender or to an offender's family member - 

and the claimant is, at the same time, also entitled to income support or to an income-based jobseeker's allowance.



PART VI

DEDUCTIONS FROM BENEFITS AND DISQUALIFYING BENEFITS

Social security benefits not to be sanctionable benefits
    
19. The following social security benefits are to be treated as a disqualifying benefit but not a sanctionable benefit - 

Deductions from benefits
     20. Any restriction in section 6, 7 or 8 of the Act shall not apply in relation to payments of benefit to the extent of any deduction from the payments which fall to be made under regulations made under section 5(1)(q) of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992[26] for, or in place of, child support maintenance and for this purpose "child support maintenance" means such maintenance which is payable under Article 40 of the Child Support (Northern Ireland) Order 1991[27].



PART VII

OTHER AMENDMENTS

Amendment of the Social Security and Child Support (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations
     21. In Schedule 1 to the Social Security and Child Support (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999[28] (decisions against which no appeal lies) after paragraph 24 there shall be added the following paragraph - 



Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department for Social Development on


6th March 2002.

L.S.


D. A. Baker
Senior Officer of the Department for Social Development


EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)


These Regulations are made by virtue of, or in consequence of, sections 6 to 12 of the Social Security Fraud Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 ("the Act") and relate to restrictions in payment of certain benefits which apply where a person has been convicted of one or more benefit offences in each of two separate proceedings and one offence is committed within three years of the conviction for another such offence.

Part I contains provisions relating to citation, commencement and interpretation. The Regulations come into operation on 1st April 2002. Regulation 2 prescribes what is to be the disqualification period for the purposes of the imposition of the loss of benefit or reduction in the amount payable.

Part II prescribes what are to be the reductions in income support or joint-claim jobseeker's allowance when the restrictions apply.

Part III makes provision for an income-based jobseeker's allowance to be paid where the claimant is a person in hardship and Part IV makes provision for a joint-claim jobseeker's allowance to be paid where a joint-claim couple are a couple in hardship.

Part V makes provision regarding reductions in housing benefit during the disqualification period or the relevant period and when the benefit remains payable during those periods.

Part VI prescribes certain benefits which are to be disqualifying but not sanctionable benefits and that the restrictions in sections 6 to 8 of the Act are not to apply to deductions from benefit for, or in place of, child support maintenance.

Part VII amends the Social Security and Child Support (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999 so that no appeal to the tribunal lies on the ground that a conviction which led to the restriction was erroneous.

Sections 6(3) to (6), 7(3) and (4), 8(2) to (5) and 9(1) and (2) of the Act are some of the enabling provisions under which these Regulations are made. They were brought into operation, for the purpose only of authorising the making of regulations, on 6th March 2002 and, for all other purposes, on 1st April 2002 by virtue of the Social Security Fraud (2001 Act) (Commencement No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2002 (S.R. 2002 No. 75 (C. 7)). As these Regulations are made before the end of the period of 6 months from the commencement of the said sections, they are accordingly, exempt, by virtue of section 150(5)(b) of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992, from prior reference to the Social Security Advisory Committee.

These Regulations do not impose a charge on business.


Notes:

[1] S.I. 1998/1506 (N.I. 10)back

[2] See Article 8(b) of S.R. 1999 No. 481back

[3] 2001 c. 17 (N.I.)back

[4] 1950 c. 29 (N.I.)back

[5] 1992 c. 7back

[6] S.I. 1995/755 (N.I. 2)back

[7] S.I. 1995/2705 (N.I. 15)back

[8] S.R. 1987 No. 461; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1998 No. 73 and S.R. 2001 No. 41back

[9] S.R. 1987 No. 459; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1988 No. 318, S.R. 1990 No. 213, S.R. 1993 No. 149, S.R. 1996 No. 199, S.R. 1999 No. 371 (C. 28), S.R. 2000 Nos. 4 and 105 and S.R. 2001 No. 41back

[10] S.R. 1996 No. 198; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1996 No. 503, S.R. 1999 No. 385, S.R. 2000 No. 350 and S.R. 2001 Nos. 41 and 120back

[11] Regulation 22A was inserted by regulation 13 of S.R. 1996 No. 199 and amended by Article 9(2) of S.R. 1999 No. 371 (C. 28), regulation 4(2)(a) of S.R. 2000 No. 4 and regulation 2 of S.R. 2000 No. 105back

[12] The amounts in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 2 were substututed by S.R. 2001 No. 41back

[13] 2000 c. 4 (N.I.)back

[14] The definition of "benefit week" was amended by regulation 2(a) of S.R. 1988 No. 318back

[15] Paragraph (3A) was inserted by Article 56 of, and paragraph 6(3) of Schedule 7 to, the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/3147 (N.I. 11))back

[16] The amounts in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 1 were substituted by S.R. 2001 No. 41back

[17] Paragraph (e) was inserted by paragraph 13(5) of Schedule 2 to the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 (S.I. 1995/2705 (N.I. 15))back

[18] Article 21 was amended by Schedule 1 to the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (S.I. 1996/1919 (N.I. 16)) and paragraph 13 of Schedule 7 to the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999back

[19] Paragraph 14 was amended by regulation 2(17)(c) of S.R. 1996 No. 503 and regulation 2(2) of S.R. 1999 No. 385back

[20] Article 5A was inserted by section 56 of, and paragraph 5(2) of Schedule 7 to, the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999back

[21] Article 22A was inserted by Article 56 of, and paragraph 14 of Schedule 7 to, the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999back

[22] Paragraphs 20H and 20I were inserted by paragraph 53(4) of Schedule 2 to S.R. 2000 No. 350back

[23] Schedule A1 was inserted by Schedule 1 to S.R. 2000 No. 350 and amended by regulation 2(6) of S.R. 2001 No. 120back

[24] The amounts in paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 2 were substituted by S.R. 2001 No. 41back

[25] Section 36 was substituted by Article 51(1) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/3147 (N.I. 11))back

[26] 1992 c. 8back

[27] S.I. 1991/2628 (N.I. 23); Article 40 is substituted by section 20 of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act (Northern Ireland) 2000 (c. 4) (N.I.))back

[28] S.R. 1999 No. 162; paragraph 24 was added by paragraph 7 of Schedule 4 to S.R. 2001 No. 176back



ISBN 0 33794189 0


  © Crown copyright 2002

Prepared 14 March 2002


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