The Social Security (Severe Disablement Allowance) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1991

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)

These regulations which come into operation on 14th October 1991 further amend the Social Security (Severe Disablement Allowance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1984 (“the principal regulations”).

Regulation 2 provides that section 36(4) of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Act 1975 (“the Act”) is modified so that a person shall be treated—

(a) as both resident and present in Northern Ireland if he is living abroad either because he is a serving member of the forces or is a member of the family of such a person; and

(b) as present in Northern Ireland if he is in prescribed employment in connection with continental shelf operations or abroad in his capacity as an airman or mariner.

Regulation 3 provides that a person shall be treated for the purposes of section 36A of the Act (severe disablement allowance: age related addition) as having qualified for severe disablement allowance—

(a) where he is a person formerly entitled to a non-contributory invalidity pension, on the first day of a period of incapacity for work of not less than 196 consecutive days which immediately preceded the day on which he was first entitled to such a pension;

(b) where he is a person who was incapable of work but not both incapable of work and disabled immediately before the first day of a period of incapacity for work of not less than 196 consecutive days, on the first day of incapacity for work in that period; or

(c) where he is a person to whom regulation 6 of the principal regulations applies, on the first day of a period of incapacity for work of not less than 196 consecutive days which immediately preceded the first day on which he was previously entitled to a severe disablement allowance.

These regulations correspond to provision contained in regulations made by the Secretary of State for Social Security in relation to Great Britain and accordingly, by virtue of section 10(2) of, and paragraph 21 of Schedule 3 to, the Social Security Act 1980 (c. 30), are not subject to the requirement of section 10(1) of that Act for prior reference to the Social Security Advisory Committee.