Administration of housing and council tax benefits
340.Paragraphs 5 to 7 and 9 amend sections 139E, 139F, 139G and 140B (5A) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992, to take account of the more flexible powers of direction contained in section 39. The amendments enable the Secretary of State to require information he needs from a local authority to decide whether it had taken the action specified in the direction, in the same way as he can decide on whether specified standards have been obtained. The amendments also provide for the Secretary of State to take the same enforcement action when an authority fails to comply with a direction on actions, as he can when an authority fails to deliver on standards set down in a direction.
