Social Security Act 1980

Advisory Committees

9 The Social Security Advisory Committee

(1) There shall be a committee, to be known as the Social Security Advisory Committee (and hereafter in this section and in the following section referred to as " the Committee ").—

(a) to give (whether in pursuance of a reference under this Act or otherwise) advice and assistance to the Secretary of State in connection with the discharge of his functions under the relevant enactments;

(b) to give (whether in pursuance of a reference under this Act or otherwise) advice and assistance to the Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland (hereafter in this section and in the following section referred to as " the Northern Ireland Department ") in connection with the discharge of its functions under the relevant Northern Ireland enactments ; and

(c) to perform such other duties as may be assigned to the Committee by or under this Act, any of the relevant enactments or relevant Northern Ireland enactments or any other enactment;

and the National Insurance Advisory Committee is hereby abolished.

(2) Part I of Schedule 3 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the constitution of the Committee and the other matters there mentioned.

(3) The Secretary of State may from time to time refer to the Committee for consideration and advice such questions relating to the operation of any of the relevant enactments as he thinks fit (including questions as to the advisability of amending any of them); and the Northern Ireland Department may from time to time refer to the Committee for consideration and advice such questions relating to the operation of any of the relevant North-em Ireland enactments as the Department thinks fit (including questions as to the advisability of amending any of them).

(4) The Secretary of State and the Northern Ireland Department shall furnish the Committee with such information as the Committee may reasonably require for the proper discharge of its functions.

(5) The Secretary of State may by regulations make transitional provision in connection with the abolition of the National Insurance Advisory Committee and the establishment of the Social Security Advisory Committee; and, without prejudice to the generality of the preceding provisions of this subsection, such regulations may contain provision—

(a) for treating anything done by or in relation to the National Insurance Advisory Committee as having been done by or in relation to the other Committee; and

(b) for repealing section 11(1) of this Act.

The power to make regulations conferred by this subsection shall be exercisable by statutory instrument and a statutory instrument made by virtue of this subsection shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(6) In Part II of Schedule 1 to the [1975 c. 24.] House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 and Part II of Schedule 1 to the [1975 c. 25.] Northern Ireland Assembly Disqualification Act 1975 (which list the bodies of which all the members are disqualified under those Acts) there shall be inserted at the appropriate place in alphabetical order the words " The Social Security Advisory Committee ".

(7) In this section and the following section—

• " the relevant enactments " means the [1970 c. 55.] Family Income Supplements Act 1970, the Social Security Acts 1975 to 1979, Part I of Schedule 3 to the [1975 c. 18.] Social Security (Consequential Provisions) Act 1975, the [1975 c. 61.] Child Benefit Act 1975 and the [1976 c. 71.] Supplementary Benefits Act 1976; and

• " the relevant Northern Ireland enactments" means the [1971 c. 8 (N.I.).] Family Income Supplements Act (Northern Ireland) 1971, the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Acts 1975 to 1979, Part I of Schedule 3 to the [S.I. 1975/1504 (N.I. 16).] Social Security (Consequential Provisions) Act 1975, the Child Benefit (Northern Ireland) Order 1975 and the [S.I. 1977/2156 (N.I. 27).] Supplementary Benefits (Northern Ireland) Order 1977;

but in the preceding provisions of this subsection references to the Social Security Acts 1975 to 1979 and to the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Acts 1975 to 1979 shall be construed as excluding those Acts as they apply to industrial injuries benefit within the meaning respectively of the principal Act and of the [1975 c. 15.] Social Security (Northern Ireland) Act 1975 and as excluding respectively Parts III and IV of the Pensions Act and Parts IV and V of the [S.I. 1975/1503 (N.I. 15).] Social Security Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1975.

10 Consultation with Committee on proposals for regulations

(1) Subject to the following subsection, where—

(a) the Secretary of State proposes to make regulations under any of the relevant enactments or under section 123(2) or (3) of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Act 1975 (which contains provision for modifying that Act in its application to members of Her Majesty's forces); or

(b) the Northern Ireland Department proposes to make regulations under any of the relevant Northern Ireland enactments,

the Secretary of State or, as the case may be, the Department shall refer the proposals, in the form of draft regulations or otherwise, to the Committee.

(2) The preceding subsection shall not apply to the regulations specified in Part II of Schedule 3 to this Act; and nothing in that subsection shall require any proposals to be referred to the Committee if—

(a) it appears to the Secretary of State or, as the case may be, the Northern Ireland Department that by reason of the urgency of the matter it is inexpedient so to refer the proposals ; or

(b) the Committee has agreed that the proposals should not be referred to it.

(3) The Committee shall consider any proposals referred to it by the Secretary of State or the Northern Ireland Department under this section and shall make to the Secretary of State or, as the case may be, the Department a report containing such recommendations with regard to the subject-matter of the proposals as the Committee thinks appropriate.

(4) If after receiving a report of the Committee the Secretary of State lays before Parliament any regulations or draft regulations which comprise the whole or any part of the subject-matter of the proposals referred to the Committee, he shall lay with the regulations or draft regulations a copy of the Committee's report and a statement showing—

(a) the extent (if any) to which he has, in framing the regulations, given effect to the Committee's recommendations ; and

(b) in so far as effect has not been given to them, his reasons why not.

(5) In the case of any regulations laid before Parliament at a time when Parliament is not sitting, the requirements of the preceding subsection shall be satisfied as respects either House of Parliament if a copy of the report and statement there referred to are laid before that House not later than the second day on which the House sits after the laying of the regulations.

(6) If after receiving a report of the Committee the Northern Ireland Department lays before the Northern Ireland Assembly any regulations which comprise the whole or any part of the subject-matter of the proposals referred to the Committee, the Department shall lay with the regulations a copy of the Committee's report and a statement showing—

(a) the extent (if any) to which the Department has, in framing the regulations, given effect to the Committee's recommendations; and

(b) in so far as effect has not been given to them, the Department's reasons why not.

(7) Where by virtue only of paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of this section regulations are made without proposals in respect of the regulations having been referred to the Committee, then, unless the Committee agrees that this subsection shall not apply, the Secretary of State or, as the case may be, the Northern Ireland Department shall, as soon as practicable after making the regulations, refer them to the Committee, which shall consider them and make a report to the Secretary of State or, as the case may be, to the Northern Ireland Department containing such recommendations with regard to the regulations as the Committee thinks appropriate ; and—

(a) a copy of any report made to the Secretary of State in pursuance of this subsection shall be laid by him before each House of Parliament together, if the report contains recommendations, with a statement of the extent (if any) to which the Secretary of State proposes to give effect to the recommendations ;

(b) a copy of any report made to the Northern Ireland Department in pursuance of this subsection shall be laid by the Department before the Northern Ireland Assembly together, if the report contains recommendations, with a statement of the extent (if any) to which the Department proposes to give effect to the recommendations.

(8) Section 41(3) of the [1954 c. 33 (N.I.).] Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 (which specifies the procedure for laying statutory instruments or statutory documents before the Northern Ireland Assembly) shall apply in relation to any document which by virtue of subsection (6) or (7) of this section is required to be laid before that Assembly as if it were a statutory document within the meaning of that Act.

(9) In relation to regulations required or authorised to be made by the Secretary of State in conjunction with the Treasury or by the Northern Ireland Department in conjunction with the Department of Finance for Northern Ireland, any reference in this section to the Secretary of State or the Northern Ireland Department shall be construed as a reference to the authorities making or proposing to make the regulations.

11 Exclusion of requirements to consult Advisory Committees

(1) Section 139(1) of the principal Act (which requires the Secretary of State to seek the advice of the National Insurance Advisory Committee on certain proposals to make regulations under that Act) shall, while it remains in force, not apply to—

(a) regulations contained in a statutory instrument which states that it contains only provisions in consequence of an order under section 126A of that Act (which provides for the up-rating of certain increments); and

(b) regulations made during the period of six months beginning with the date of the passing of this Act if the regulations are contained in a statutory instrument which states that it contains only regulations to make provision consequential on the passing of this Act.

(2) Section 141(2) of the principal Act (which requires the Secretary of State to seek the advice of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council on certain proposals to make regulations under that Act) shall not apply to—

(a) regulations contained in a statutory instrument which states that the only provision with respect to industrial injuries benefit or its administration that is made by the regulations is the same or substantially the same as provision made by the instrument with respect to other benefit under Part II of that Act or the administration of such benefit; and

(b) regulations made during the period of six months beginning with the date of the passing of this Act and contained in a statutory instrument which states that it contains only regulations to make provision consequential on the passing of this Act.