Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Claims and Payments) (Amendment No. 2) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 and shall come into operation on 11th April 2005.

Amendment of the Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations

2.—(1) The Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(3) shall be amended in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3).

(2) In regulation 19(4) (time for claiming benefit) –

(a)in paragraph (3) –

(i)for sub-paragraph (ga)(5) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraph –

“(ga)subject to paragraphs (3A) and (3B), bereavement benefit;”, and

(ii)in sub-paragraph (h) the words “except in a case to which section 3(3) of the Administration Act applies,” shall be omitted;

(b)in paragraph (3A)(6), after “bereavement payment” there shall be inserted “within the meaning of section 36 of the Contributions and Benefits Act”; and

(c)after paragraph (3A) there shall be inserted the following paragraph –

“(3B) The prescribed time for claiming bereavement benefit in respect of the day on which the claimant’s spouse has died or may be presumed to have died where –

(a)less than 12 months have elapsed since the day of the death; and

(b)the circumstances are as specified in section 3(1)(b) of the Administration Act (late claim for bereavement benefit where death is difficult to establish),

is that day and the period of 12 months immediately following that day if the other conditions of entitlement are satisfied.”.

(3) In Schedule 8A(7) (deductions from benefits and direct payment to third parties) –

(a)in paragraph 1 (interpretation) the definition of “income support”(8) shall be omitted; and

(b)in paragraph 4(2A)(9) (miscellaneous accommodation costs) for “£18·10”, in each place where it occurs, there shall be substituted “£18·80”.

Revocations

3.  The Regulations specified in column (1) of the Schedule are revoked to the extent mentioned in column (3).

Regulation 3

SCHEDULEREGULATIONS REVOKED

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)

Regulation 2 of these Regulations amends the Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 to –

• provide an extended time for claiming bereavement benefit, or an increase in certain benefits in respect of an adult or child dependant, where death is difficult to establish (paragraph (2)); and

• omit an obsolete definition of “income support” and increase from £18·10 to £18·80 the amount allowed for personal expenses where a person is in accommodation for which part of his benefit is paid direct to the person to whom charges in respect of that accommodation are payable (paragraph (3)).

Regulation 3 makes consequential revocations.

These Regulations 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 Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992, 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.