2003 No. 329
HOUSING; RATES; SOCIAL SECURITY

The Social Security (Students and Income-Related Benefits Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003

Made
Coming into operation in accordance with regulation 1(1)
The Department for Social Development, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by sections 122(1)(a) and (d), 132(3) and (4)(b) and 171(1), (3) and (4) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 19921 and Article 14(1) and (4)(b) of the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 19952, and now vested in it3, and of all other powers enabling it in that behalf, with the consent of the Department of Finance and Personnel4, in so far as regulations 2(1), (2) and (3)(a) and 3(1) and (2)(a) are concerned, and after agreement by the Social Security Advisory Committee that proposals in respect of those regulations should not be referred to it5, hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation, commencement and interpretation1.

(1)

These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Students and Income-Related Benefits Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003 and shall come into operation –

(a)

for the purposes of this regulation, on 1st August 2003;

(b)

for the purposes of regulations 2 and 3 –

(i)

in the case of a student whose period of study begins on or after 1st August 2003 but before 1st September 2003, on the day the period of study begins;

(ii)

in any other case, on 1st September 2003.

(2)

In these Regulations –

F1...

“the Income Support Regulations” means the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 19877;
“the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations” means the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 19968.

(3)

The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 19549 shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Assembly.

Disregards2.

(1)

In sub-paragraph (a) of each of the provisions specified in paragraph (3) for the sum “£265” there shall be substituted the sum “£270”.

F2(2)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(3)

The provisions specified for the purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2) (which relate respectively to sums to be disregarded from the calculation of grant income and from student loans) are –

F3(a)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(b)

regulations 62(2A)12 and 66A(5)13 of the Income Support Regulations;

(c)

regulations 131(3)14 and 136(5)15 of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations.

Calculation of grant income3.

(1)

In each of the provisions specified in paragraph (2) –

(a)

for sub-paragraph (cc) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraph –

“(cc)

any grant paid under the Schedule to the Education (Assembly Learning Grant Scheme) (Wales) Regulations 200216;”;

(b)

after sub-paragraph (d) there shall be added the following –“and

(e)

any grant paid under regulation 16(7) of the Education (Student Support) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 200317.”.

(2)

The provisions specified for the purposes of paragraph (1) (calculation of grant income) are –

F4(a)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(b)

regulation 62(2B) of the Income Support Regulations19;

(c)

regulation 131(3A) of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations20.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department for Social Development on 9th July 2003.

John O'Neill
A senior officer of the
Department for Social Development

The Department of Finance and Personnel hereby consents to regulations 2(1), (2) and (3)(a) and 3(1) and (2)(a) of the foregoing Regulations.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Finance and Personnel on 10th July 2003.

Rodney Scott
A senior officer of the
Department of Finance and Personnel
(This note is not part of the Regulations.)

These Regulations further amend the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 and the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 in so far as those Regulations apply to students.

In particular, they –

  • increase the amounts of grants and loan income to be disregarded (to £270 and £340 respectively) in respect of books and equipment and for travel costs (regulation 2);

  • provide for the full disregard of grants payable under the National Assembly for Wales, Learning Grant (regulation 3(1)(a));

  • provide for the full disregard of the Department for Employment and Learning Parents' Learning Allowance payments (regulation 3(1)(b)).

  • In so far as these Regulations are required, for the purposes of regulations 2(1), (2) and (3)(a) and 3(1) and (2)(a), to be referred to the Social Security Advisory Committee under section 149(2) of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992, (“the 1992 Act”), after agreement by the Social Security Advisory Committee, they have not been so referred by virtue of section 150(1)(b) of that Act. Otherwise they make in relation to Northern Ireland only provision corresponding to provision contained in Regulations made by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 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.

  • These Regulations do not impose a charge on business.