These Regulations further amend the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996, the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, the Family Credit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, the Disability Working Allowance (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992 and the Social Security (Adjudication) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995.

In particular, these Regulations— provide new rules in all the income-related benefits and jobseeker’s allowance for the disregard of certain payments made under Article 15A of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972 from the calculation of income other than earnings for the purpose of the benefits mentioned above. The new rules relate to payments under the Personal Social Services (Direct Payments) (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (S.I. 1996/1923 (N.I. 19) (regulation 2(1), (2)(b), (3)(b), (4) and (5)); extend the disregards in relation to income support and jobseeker’s allowance to income from personal pensions and retirement annuity contracts (regulation 2(2)(a) and (3)(a)); modify the definition of “housing benefit expenditure” for the purpose of income support and jobseeker’s allowance (regulation 4); in income support and jobseeker’s allowance, ensure that a former student’s income is disregarded in respect of any period after their course or training is completed (regulation 2(2)(b) and (3)(b)) and in relation to income paid to former students who have abandoned their course, ensure that such income is not taken into account beyond the date the course would have ended or beyond the date any repayment has been made and to specify the rate at which such income is taken into account (regulations 5, 6 and 7); extend the rules on notional capital in income support in relation to pensions paid to widows of former Army and Navy personnel so that they coincide with the corresponding rules relating to notional income (regulation 9); in housing benefit, provide that where a non-student claimant shares accommodation with a student or students who are excluded from entitlement to housing benefit and with whom he or she is jointly liable for rates, the presence of the student(s) will be excluded from the calculation of a rate rebate (regulation 10); in housing benefit, provide that where overpayments of benefit which are recovered from a landlord, the tenant’s liability to pay rent or rates or both shall not be discharged in respect of the overpayment recovered (regulations 11 and 12); in housing benefit, clarify the position on which official errors would result in such benefit being irrecoverable (regulation 13); in housing benefit, specify the day on which a member of the family of a claimant for housing benefit is to be treated as reaching the age of 16 for the purpose of determining deductions to be made from the claimant’s eligible rent on account of charges made for meals which form part of that rent (regulation 14); in adjudication, change the position relating to the date upon which reviews of decisions relating to disability working allowance take effect (regulation 15); correct some technical errors and erroneous references (regulations 2(6), 3 and 8).

In so far as these Regulations are required, for the purposes of regulations 2(1), 10, 11, 12 and 13 to be referred to the Social Security Advisory Committee under section 149(2) of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992 (c. 8), (“the 1992 Act”), and after agreement by the Social Security Advisory Committee, they have not been so referred by virtue of section 150(1)(b) of that Act. These Regulations correspond to provision contained in Regulations made by the Secretary of State for Social Security in relation to Great Britain and accordingly, by virtue of section 149(3) of, and paragraph 10 of Schedule 5 to, the 1992 Act, are not subject to the requirement of section 149(2) of that Act for prior reference to the Social Security Advisory Committee.