The Social Security (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 4) Regulations 2006

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend a number of different regulations relating to social security.

Regulations 5 and 13 include amendments to the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987 (S.I. 1987/1967) (“the Income Support Regulations”) and the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996 (S.I. 1996/207) (“the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations”)—

(a) to include the new definitions relating to disabled children in the Tax Credits Act 2002 (c.21); and

(b) to provide that certain charitable and voluntary payments of income are disregarded in full.

Regulation 5(8)(c) amends the Income Support Regulations to change the provisions on transitional protection for housing costs. In determining whether that protection is to be reduced, housing costs for any benefit week are compared to what they were in the immediately preceding benefit week.

Regulations 5, 13, 15 and 17 include amendments to the Income Support Regulations, the Jobseekers Allowance Regulations, the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/213) and the Council Tax Benefit Regulations (S.I. 2006/215)—

(a) to create a disregard for any payment made in consequence of any personal injury to a claimant or his or her partner for a period of up to 52 weeks from the day of receipt of the first payment;

(b) to enable awards of certain damages to be disregarded where these awards are not administered by the court but are held subject to the order or direction of the court. In addition, these Regulations provide that income derived from such capital is no longer to be treated as capital;

(c) to take account of changes to the linking term for welfare to work beneficiaries in regulation 12 of these Regulations.

Regulation 9 amends the Social Security (Incapacity Benefit - Increases for Dependants) Regulations 1994 (S.I. 1994/2945) to provide for entitlement to an increase in incapacity benefit where the claimant lives with an adult who is entitled to child benefit in respect of a child or young person who is living with him.

Paragraph (4) of regulation 10 revokes paragraphs (2) and (3) of regulation 16 of the Social Security (Incapacity Benefit) Regulations 1994 (S.I. 1994/2946) which provided for a specific test for presence in Great Britain for certain Incapacity Benefit claimants who receive income on which they do not have to pay tax in the United Kingdom (tax-free emoluments). Regulations 4, 7 and 8 make the same revocations in relation to severe disablement allowance, attendance allowance and disability living allowance.

Regulation 12 amends the Social Security (Incapacity for Work) (General) Regulations 1995 (S.I. 1995/311). Paragraph (2) replaces regulation 11 of those Regulations as the previous provision made reference to procedures which are no longer in use.

Paragraph (3) of regulation 12 amends regulation 13A of S.I. 1995/311 to increase from one week to one month after entitlement ceased, the period within which a person must become engaged in remunerative work after cessation of benefit in order to be a welfare to work beneficiary and to remove the requirement to give notice. Paragraph (3)(f) amends regulation 13A(4) in order to extend the linking term (by which periods of incapacity for work can be linked together to form one period) which applies to welfare to work beneficiaries to 104 weeks and amends the definition of “immediate past period of incapacity for work” so that this refers to the most recent period of incapacity for work. Regulations 2, 10(2) and 11 amend provisions in the Social Security (Widow’s Benefit and Retirement Pensions) Regulations 1979 (S.I. 1979/642), the Social Security (Incapacity Benefit) Regulations 1994 and the Social Security (Incapacity Benefit) (Transitional) Regulations 1995 (S.I. 1995/310) to increase the linking term which applies to relevant welfare to work beneficiaries to 104 weeks.

Regulations 14, 16 and 18 include amendments to the State Pension Credit Regulations 2002 (S.I. 2002/1792), the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/214) and the Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/216)—

(a) to clarify the treatment of certain types of notional income;

(b) to enable awards of certain damages to be disregarded where these awards are not administered by the court but are held subject to the order or direction of the court.

Regulations 16 and 18 include amendments to the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006 and the Council Tax Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations 2006 to clarify existing housing benefit and council tax benefit provisions on when a change of circumstances takes effect (regulations 16(3) and 18(3)).

These Regulations also contain a number of other minor amendments.

A full regulatory impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as it has no impact on the costs of business, charities and voluntary bodies.