Explanatory note

These Regulations further amend—

in the following respects—

The Social Security (Child Maintenance Bonus) Regulations 1996 are amended with respect to the definition of “child maintenance”, to provide for the periods for which the work condition for entitlement to a bonus will remain satisfied in specified cases and to amend the conditions specifying what comprises a bonus period (regulation 2).

The Income-Related Benefits Regulations and the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations are amended—

The Housing Benefit, Income Support and Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations are amended with respect to the meaning of persons in detention (regulation 5).

The Housing Benefit Regulations are amended so as to update a definition applicable for establishing a person’s maximum rent eligible for housing benefit and with respect to tenancies excluded from the benefit (regulations 6 and 7).

The Income Support and Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations are amended with respect to the treatment of instalments of grant awards for former students and the calculation of notional income and income other than earnings (regulations 8 and 9).

The Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations are amended by extending the meaning of “period of interruption of employment” which is to form part of jobseeking periods and so as to provide that in relation to linked periods which span 6th October 1996, days of unemployment which form part of a period of interruption of employment, shall be treated as a jobseeking period in certain circumstances where such linked periods had already ended before 1st December 1997 (regulation 10).

All the Regulations referred to in sub-paragraph (b) of the first paragraph to this Note, together with the Social Security (Invalid Care Allowance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1976, the Child Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1979, the Social Security (Severe Disablement Allowance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1984, the Social Security (Attendance Allowance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992 and the Social Security (Disability Living Allowance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992, are amended so as to extend the right to benefit of persons granted exceptional leave to enter the United Kingdom by an immigration officer (regulation 11).

The Income Support Regulations and the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations are further amended so as to disregard concessionary payments in respect of unpaid income support, income-based jobseeker’s allowance and payments from the social fund, in calculating a person’s entitlement to urgent payments of either of those benefits (regulation 12).

In so far as these Regulations are required, for the purposes of regulations 3(1), (2)(c), (3) and (4)(c), 4(1), (2)(c) and (3), 5(1) and (2)(a), 6, 7 and 11(3) and (4)(a) 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”), 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 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.