Social Security (Consequences of Emergency) (Northern Ireland) Order 1974

Title and commencement N.I.

1.  This Order may be cited as the Social Security (Consequences of Emergency) (Northern Ireland) Order 1974 … Commencement …

Interpretation N.I.

2.—(1) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 [1954 c.33] shall apply to Article 1 and the following provisions of this Order as it applies to a Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

(2) In this Order—

• “the Department” means the Department of Health and Social Services;

• “emergency benefit” means benefit under regulation 3 of the Regulations;

• “the Regulations” means the Emergency (Payment of Benefit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1974; [SR 1974/89]

• “supplementary benefit” means benefit within the meaning of the Supplementary Benefits Acts (Northern Ireland) 1966 to 1973F1 ;

• “unemployment benefit” and “sickness benefit” mean, respectively, unemployment benefit and sickness benefit under the National Insurance Measures (Northern Ireland) 1966 to 1974F2 , including any sum payable by way of increase of or supplement to that benefit under those Measures.

F1 1977 NI 27

F2 1975 c.15, c.18

Suspension of normal benefits where emergency benefit is paid N.I.

3.  Where emergency benefit is, or has before the commencement of this Order been, paid to or in respect of any person in respect of any period, that person shall not be entitled to any payment of supplementary benefit, unemployment benefit or sickness benefit in respect of that period, and any claim by or in respect of that person for supplementary benefit, unemployment benefit or sickness benefit in respect of that period shall be treated as, and shall be deemed to have been, a claim for emergency benefit.

Reimbursement out of National Insurance Fund of certain expenses of emergency benefit N.I.

4.—(1) There shall be paid out of the Northern Ireland National Insurance Fund into the Consolidated Fund such sums as the Department may determine to be reasonable having regard to its estimate of—

(a) the extent to which the sums paid by way of emergency benefit correspond to the amount that would have been payable out of the Northern Ireland National Insurance Fund in respect of unemployment benefit and sickness benefit if the emergency benefit had not been paid; and

(b) the extent to which the expenses of any Northern Ireland department under or in connection with the arrangements for the payment of emergency benefit are attributable to the payment of so much of the sums paid by way of emergency benefit as corresponds to that amount.

(2) Any determination under paragraph (1) shall require the consent of, and any estimate under that paragraph shall be made in accordance with directions given by, the Department of Finance.

Power to make incidental, etc., provision N.I.

5.—(1) The Department may by order make such incidental, transitional or supplementary provision as appears to it to be expedient in connection with the operation, revocation or expiration of the Regulations, including provision modifying any of the provisions of, or of any instrument made under, the National Insurance Measures (Northern Ireland) 1966 to 1974F3 or the Supplementary Benefits Acts (Northern Ireland) 1966 to 1973F4 or applying any of those provisions, with or without modifications, to or for the purposes of emergency benefit.

(2) An order under paragraph (1) may be made so as to take effect from a date before the making thereof, whether before or after the commencement of this Order.

F3 1975 c.15, c.18

F4 1977 NI 27