Insertion of Parts IVA and IVB
12. After regulation 16 insert—
“Part IVAHardship: Income-related employment and support allowance
Payment of income-related employment and support allowance to specified persons
16A.—(1) Subject to regulation 16B, an income-related employment and support allowance is payable in accordance with this Part to an offender or an offender’s family member (“O”) where—
(a)O meets the conditions for entitlement to that allowance;
(b)the amount of the allowance otherwise payable to O is subject to a reduction under regulation 3ZA or regulation 63 of the ESA Regulations; and
(c)the Department is satisfied that O, their partner or a child or qualifying young person for whom they are responsible, will be in hardship unless such a payment is made.
(2) The Department must take the following matters into account in determining whether a person is in hardship for the purpose of paragraph (1)(c)—
(a)whether O’s partner or a person in O’s family satisfies the requirements for a disability premium specified in paragraphs 6 and 7 of Schedule 4 to the ESA Regulations, or for an element of child tax credit in respect of a child or young person who is disabled or severely disabled within the meaning of regulation 8 of the Child Tax Credit Regulations 2002(1);
(b)the household’s available resources without a payment under paragraph (1), including resources from persons who are not members of the household;
(c)the difference between the available resources and the amount of a payment under paragraph (1) that O would receive;
(d)whether there is a substantial risk that the household will not have access to essential items (including food, clothing, heating, and accommodation), or will have access to such essential items at considerably reduced levels, without a payment under paragraph (1); and
(e)the length of time that the factors set out in sub-paragraphs (b) to (d) are likely to continue.
(3) In paragraphs (1) and (2), “partner”, “child” and “qualifying young person” have the same meaning as they have in the ESA Regulations.
Requirements for payments under regulation 16A(1)
16B. The Department must not make a payment under regulation 16A(1) unless O—
(a)completes and submits an application in a form approved for the purpose by the Department, or in such other form as the Department accepts as sufficient, in such manner as the Department determines; and
(b)provides such information or evidence relating to the matters specified in regulation 16A(2)(b) to (d) as the Department may require, in such manner as the Department determines.
Amount of payment under regulation 16A(1)
16C.—(1) The amount of a payment under regulation 16A(1) is 60 per cent. of the amount for a single claimant as set out in paragraph 1(1)(a) of Part 1 of Schedule 4 to the ESA Regulations.
(2) A payment calculated in accordance with paragraph (1) is to be, if it is not a multiple of 5 pence, rounded to the nearest such multiple or, if it is a multiple of 2.5 pence but not of 5 pence, to the next lower multiple of 5 pence.
PART IVBHardship: Universal Credit
Payment of universal credit to specified persons
16D.—(1) Subject to regulation 16E, universal credit is payable in accordance with this Part to an offender or an offender’s family member (“O”) or where O is a joint claimant, to O and the other joint claimant (“J”), where the Department is satisfied that they are in hardship.
(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), O or, as the case may be, O and J must be considered as being in hardship only where—
(a)they meet the conditions for entitlement to universal credit;
(b)they cannot meet their immediate and most basic and essential needs, specified in paragraph (3), or the immediate and most basic and essential needs of a child or qualifying young person for whom O is, or O and J are, responsible only because the amount of their award has been reduced under—
(i)Article 31 or 32 of the Order by the daily reduction rate determined in accordance with regulation 108 of the UC Regulations; or
(ii)regulation 3ZB by the daily reduction rate determined in accordance with paragraph (3) or (4) of that regulation;
(c)they have made every effort to access alternative sources of support to meet, or partially meet, such needs; and
(d)they have made every effort to cease to incur any expenditure which does not relate to such needs.
(3) The needs referred to in paragraph (2) are—
(a)accommodation;
(b)heating;
(c)food;
(d)hygiene.
(4) In paragraph (2)(b), “child” and “qualifying young person” have the same meaning as in Part 2 of the Order(2) and whether or not O is, or O and J are, responsible for a child or qualifying young person is to be determined in accordance with regulation 4 of the UC Regulations.
Requirements for payments under regulation 16D(1)
16E. The Department must not make a payment under regulation 16D(1) unless—
(a)O completes and submits or, as the case may be, O and J complete and submit, an application in a form approved for the purpose by the Department, or in such other form as the Department accepts as sufficient, in such manner as the Department determines;
(b)O furnishes or, as the case may be, O and J furnish, such information or evidence relating to the matters specified in regulation 16D(2)(b) to (d) as the Department may require, in such manner as the Department determines; and
(c)O accepts or, as the case may be, O and J accept, that any such payments that are paid are recoverable and may be recovered in accordance with section 69ZH of the Administration Act(3), except in such cases as the Department determines otherwise.
Period in respect of which payments under regulation 16D(1) are to be made
16F. A payment under regulation 16D(1) is to be made in respect of—
(a)a period which—
(i)begins with the date on which the application under regulation 16E(a) is submitted or, if later, the date on which all of the conditions in regulation 16D(2) are met; and
(ii)ends with the day before the date on which O’s, or as the case may be, O and J’s next full payment of universal credit for an assessment period is due to be made (or would be made but for a reduction under regulation 3ZB); or
(b)where the period calculated in accordance with paragraph (a) is 7 days or less, that period plus a further period ending with the day referred to in paragraph (a)(ii) or, if sooner, the last day in respect of which O’s, or as the case may be, O and J’s award is reduced in accordance with regulation 3ZB.
The amount of payments under regulation 16D(1)
16G. The amount of a payment under regulation 16D(1) for each day in respect of which such a payment is to be made is to be determined in accordance with the formula—
where A is equal to the amount of the reduction in the amount of O’s award or, as the case may be, the amount of O and J’s award, calculated under regulation 3ZB for the assessment period preceding the assessment period in which an application is submitted under regulation 16E(a).
Recoverability of payments made under regulation 16D(1)
16H. Payments made under regulation 16D(1) are recoverable by virtue of section 69ZH of the Administration Act as if they were hardship payments under regulation 111 of the UC Regulations and for this purpose, regulation 114 of those Regulations applies to payments under regulation 16D(1) as it applies to such hardship payments.”.
S.I. 2002/2007; relevant amending provisions are S.I. 2010/751, S.I 2013/591 and S.I. 2014/2924.
See Article 46 of Welfare Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 2015 (N.I. 1).
1992 c. 8; section 69ZH was inserted by section 109(1) of the Welfare Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 2015 (N.I.1).