Regulation 1 Citation, commencement and interpretation

These Regulations may be cited as the Social Fund Winter Fuel Payment Regulations 1998 and shall come into force on 16th January 1998.

In these Regulations—

• “the Administration Act” means the Social Security Administration Act 1992;

• “constant attendance allowance” means—

  1. (a)

     an increase of disablement pension under section 104 of the Contributions and Benefits Act;

  2. (b)

     an increase of an allowance which is payable in respect of constant attendance under paragraph 6(4)(b) of Schedule 8 to that Act;

• “the Contributions and Benefits Act” means the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992;

• “graduated retirement benefit” means the benefit to which section 62 of the Contributions and Benefits Act applies;

• “income-based jobseeker’s allowance” has the same meaning in these Regulations as it has in the Jobseekers Act 1995^f1 by virtue of section 1(4) of that Act;

• “the Income Support Regulations” means the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987^f2;

• “industrial death benefit” means a benefit to which Part VI of Schedule 7 to the Contributions and Benefits Act refers;

• “the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations” means the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996^f3;

• “married couple” means a man and woman who are married to each other and are members of the same household;

• “partner” means where a person—

  1. (a)

     is a member of a married or an unmarried couple living in the same household, the other member of that couple;

  2. (b)

     is married polygamously to two or more members of his household, any such member living in the same household;

• “the qualifying week” means the week beginning on 5th January 1998;

• “retirement pension” for the purposes of regulation 2(6) means a retirement pension to which Parts II and III of the Contributions and Benefits Act refer;

• “unmarried couple” means a man and woman who are not married to each other but are living together as husband and wife;

• “winter fuel payment” means a payment made under these Regulations out of the social fund, to meet expenses for heating pursuant to section 138(2) of the Contributions and Benefits Act.

Whether in any case a person is or is not to be treated as being a member of a household is to be determined in accordance with regulation 16 of the Income Support Regulations^f4.

In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, a reference—