The Housing Benefit (Miscellaneous Amendments No. 2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005

Amendment of the Housing Benefit Regulations

2.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the Housing Benefit Regulations shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (7).

(2) The amendments made by paragraphs (4) and (7) are to the Housing Benefit Regulations as modified in their application to persons to whom regulation 2 of the State Pension Credit Regulations applies.

(3) In regulation 5 (circumstances in which a person is or is not to be treated as occupying a dwelling as his home) –

(a) in paragraph (7A)(1), after “person” where it first appears, there shall be inserted “to whom neither paragraph (5)(a)(2) nor (8B)(c)(x)(3) applies”;

(b) for paragraph (8A)(4) there shall be substituted the following paragraphs –

“(8A) This paragraph applies to a person who is –

(a) detained in custody pending sentence upon conviction or under a sentence imposed by a court (other than a person who is detained in hospital under the provisions of the Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986(5)), and

(b) on temporary release from such detention in accordance with Rules made under the provisions of the Prison Act (Northern Ireland) 1953(6).

(8ZA) Where paragraph (8A) applies to a person, then, for any day that he is on temporary release –

(a) if such temporary release was immediately preceded by a period of temporary absence under paragraph (8) or (8B), he shall be treated as if he continues to be absent from the dwelling, despite any occupation of the dwelling;

(b) for the purposes of paragraph (8B)(c)(i), he shall be treated as if he remains in detention, and

(c) if he does not fall within paragraph (a), he shall be treated as if he does not occupy his dwelling as his home despite any such occupation of the dwelling.”;

(c) in paragraph (8B)(c)(viii) “or regulation 48A(1)(7)” shall be omitted;

(d) in paragraph (8B)(c)(x) there shall be omitted, “or (7A)”.

(4) In regulation 36 (notional income) –

(a) in paragraph (1)(a), before “the amount” there shall be inserted “subject to paragraph (1A),”;

(b) after paragraph (1) there shall be inserted the following paragraphs –

“(1A) Paragraph (1)(a) shall not apply to the following where entitlement has been deferred –

(a) a Category A or Category B retirement pension payable under sections 43 to 55 of the Contributions and Benefits Act;

(b) a shared additional pension payable under section 55A(8) of that Act, and

(c) graduated retirement benefit payable under sections 35 or 36 of the National Insurance Act (Northern Ireland) 1966(9).

(1B) For the purposes of paragraph (1A), entitlement has been deferred –

(a) in the case of a Category A or Category B pension, in the circumstances specified in section 55(3)(10) of the Contributions and Benefits Act;

(b) in the case of a shared additional pension, in the circumstances specified in section 55C(3)(11) of that Act;

(c) in the case of graduated retirement benefit, in the circumstances specified in section 35(4) and (4A)(12) of the National Insurance Act (Northern Ireland) 1966.”.

(5) Until 6th April 2005 the references in regulation 36(1B) (as inserted by paragraph (4)) to section 55(3) of the Contributions and Benefits Act, section 55C(3) of that Act and section 35(4) and (4A) of the National Insurance Act (Northern Ireland) 1966 shall have effect as if they were references to section 55(2) to the Contributions and Benefits Act, section 55C(1) of that Act and section 35(4) and (7) of the National Insurance Act (Northern Ireland) 1966 respectively.

(6) In Schedule 2 (applicable amounts), paragraph 13A(2)(a)(13) shall be omitted.

(7) In Schedule 4A (amounts to be disregarded in the calculation of income other than earnings), after paragraph 24(14) there shall be added the following paragraph –

“25.   Except in the case of income from capital specified in Part II of Schedule 5ZA, any actual income from capital.”.

(1)

Paragraph (7A) was inserted by regulation 3(f) of S.R. 1993 No. 145

(2)

Paragraph (5)(a) was amended by regulation 3(a)(i) and (ii) of S.R. 1993 No. 145

(3)

Paragraph (8B) was inserted by regulation 2(2)(c) of S.R. 1995 No. 101

(4)

Paragraph (8A) was inserted by regulation 5 of S.R. 1995 No. 89 and amended by regulation 5(1) and (2)(a)(i) of S.R. 1998 No. 81

(5)

S.I. 1986/595 (N.I. 4)

(6)

1953 c. 18 (N.I.)

(7)

Regulation 48A(1) was inserted by regulation 3(6) of S.R. 1990 No. 297

(8)

Section 55A was inserted by paragraph 3 of Schedule 6 to the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/3147 (N.I. 11))

(9)

1966 c. 6; sections 35 and 36 continue in force by virtue of Schedules 1 and 2 to the Social Security (Graduated Retirement Benefit) (No. 2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1978 (S.R. 1978 No. 105) and were amended by regulation 2(2) and (3) respectively of S.R. 2005 No. 121

(10)

Section 55 was substituted by Article 273(1) of the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 (S.I. 2005 No. 255 (N.I. 1))

(11)

Section 55C was substituted by Article 273(2) of the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 2005

(12)

Sub-section (4A) was inserted by regulation 2(2)(a) of S.R. 2005 No. 121

(13)

Paragraph 13A(2)(a) was inserted by regulation 3(b)(ii) of S.R. 2000 No. 367

(14)

Paragraph 24 was added by regulation 2(14)(b)(iii) of S.R. 2003 No. 418