The Social Security(Northern Ireland) Order 1989

Unemployment benefit: requirement to seek employment actively

12.—(1) Section 17 of the principal Act (determination of days for which benefit is payable) shall have effect with the amendments made by paragraphs (2) to (4), which are made for the purpose of requireing a claimant for unemployment benefit to show that he is actively seeking employment.

(2) In subsection (1)(a)(i) (days not to be treated as days of unemployment unless certain conditions are fulfilled) after the words “available to be employed in employed earner’s employment” there shall be inserted the words “and that day falls in a week in which he is, or is deemed in accordance with regulations to be, actively seeking such employment”.

(3) In subsection (2) (regulations) after paragraph (a) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(aa)make provision with respect to—

(i)steps which a person is required to take in any week if he is to be regarded as actively seeking employed earner’s employment in that week;

(ii)the meaning of “week” in subsection (1)(a)(i) above or in any other provision relating to a person’s actively seeking employed earner’s employment;”.

(4) After subsection (2A) of that section (determination of actual availability for employment on review of determination of deemed availability) there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(2B) Where it has been determined that a person is to be deemed in accordance with regulations to be actively seeking employed earner’s employment in any week, the question of his actually doing so in that week may be subsequently determined on a review of the determination as to his deemed doing so.”.

(5) In section 104 of that Act (review of decisions), in subsection (1)(d), after the words “section 17(2A)” there shall be inserted the words “or (2B)”.