Welfare Reform Act (Northern Ireland) 2010

Attendance in connection with jobseeker’s allowance: sanctions

27.—(1) Article 10 of the Jobseekers Order (attendance, information and evidence) is amended as follows.

(2) In paragraph (2), for sub-paragraphs (a) to (c) (together with the “and” at the end of sub-paragraph (c)) substitute—

“(a) prescribe circumstances in which a jobseeker’s allowance is not to be payable for a prescribed period (of at least one week but not more than two weeks) in the case of—

(i) a claimant (other than a joint-claim couple claiming a joint-claim jobseeker’s allowance) who fails to comply with any regulations made under that paragraph, o

(ii) a joint-claim couple claiming a joint-claim jobseeker’s allowance a member of which fails to comply with any such regulations;

(b) provide for the consequence set out in sub-paragraph (a) not to follow if, within a prescribed period of a person’s (“P”) failure to comply with any such regulations (“the relevant period”), P or, if P is a member of a joint-claim couple, either member of the couple—

(i) makes prescribed contact with an officer of the Department or of the Department for Employment and Learning, and

(ii) shows that P had good cause for the failure;

(c) provide for entitlement to a jobseeker’s allowance to cease at such time as may be determined in accordance with any such regulations if P or, as the case may be, a member of the couple does not make prescribed contact with an officer of the Department or of the Department for Employment and Learning in the relevant period;

(ca) prescribe circumstances in which a jobseeker’s allowance is to be payable in respect of a claimant even though provision made by any such regulations by virtue of sub-paragraph (a) prevents payment of a jobseeker’s allowance in respect of the claimant; and”.

(3) After that paragraph insert—

“(2A) The provision that may be made by any such regulations by virtue of paragraph (2)(ca) includes, in particular, provision for a jobseeker’s allowance payable by virtue of that sub-paragraph to be—

(a) payable only if prescribed requirements as to the provision of information are complied with;

(b) payable at a prescribed rate;

(c) payable for a prescribed period (which may differ from the period mentioned in paragraph (2)(a)).”.

(4) In paragraph 3(ca) of Schedule 3 to the 1998 Order (decisions against which an appeal lies: payability of benefit), which is inserted by section 1, after “Article” insert “10 or”.