These Regulations amend various sets of Regulations relating to housing benefit in connection with the introduction of employment and support allowance from 27th October 2008.

Regulation 1 provides for the citation and commencement of the Regulations.

Regulation 2 amends the Housing Benefit (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001 in consequence of the introduction of employment and support allowance.

Regulation 3 amends the Housing Benefit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 in order to:

• add references to employment and support allowance;

• provide that the claimant’s applicable amount can include the work-related activity component or the support component;

• provide for the personal allowance of a claimant;

• provide for the amount of the claimant’s personal allowance;

• provide further conditions for receipt of the disability premium and the enhanced disability premium;

• provide for the conditions of entitlement for the work-related activity component and the support component and for the amount of those components.

Regulation 4 makes similar amendments to the Housing Benefit (Persons who have attained the qualifying age for state pension credit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006.

Regulation 5 amends the Housing Benefit (Consequential Provisions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 in consequence of the introduction of employment and support allowance.

Section 28(2) of the Welfare Reform Act (Northern Ireland) 2007, the enabling provision under which these Regulations are made, was brought into operation, for the purpose only of authorising the making of regulations, on 1st July 2008 and, for all other purposes, on 27th July 2008 by virtue of the Welfare Reform (2007 Act) (Commencement No. 5) Order (Northern Ireland) 2008 (S.R. 2008 No. 276 (C. 14)).