2009 No. 112

Social Security

The Social Security Revaluation of Earnings Factors Order (Northern Ireland) 2009

Made

Coming into operation

This Order is made in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 130 and 165(1), (4) and (5) of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 19921 and now vested in the Department for Social Development2.

The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has made an Order3 under sections 148(3) and (4) and 189(1), (4) and (5) of the Social Security Administration Act 19924.

Accordingly the Department for Social Development makes the following Order.

Citation and commencement1

This Order may be cited as the Social Security Revaluation of Earnings Factors Order (Northern Ireland) 2009 and shall come into operation on 6th April 2009.

Revaluation of earnings factors2

The earnings factors5 for the tax years specified in the first column of the Schedule in so far as they are relevant6—

a

to the calculation—

i

of the additional pension in the rate of any long-term benefit, or

ii

of any guaranteed minimum pension, or

b

to any other calculation required under Part III of the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 19937 (including that Part as modified by or under any other enactment),

are directed to be increased for those tax years by the percentage of their amount shown opposite those tax years in the second column of the Schedule.

Rounding of fractional amounts3

Where any earnings factor relevant to the calculation specified in Article 2(a)(i), as increased in accordance with this Order, would not but for this Article be expressed as a whole number of pounds, it shall be so expressed by the rounding down of any fraction of a pound less than one half and the rounding up of any other fraction of a pound.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department for Social Development on 16th March 2009

(L.S.)John O’NeillA senior officer of the Department for Social Development

SCHEDULE

Article 2

Tax Year

Percentage

1978-79

677.6

1979-80

586.3

1980-81

473.3

1981-82

380.2

1982-83

336.1

1983-84

305.0

1984-85

275.0

1985-86

251.7

1986-87

223.0

1987-88

200.7

1988-89

176.7

1989-90

149.7

1990-91

132.7

1991-92

111.4

1992-93

98.5

1993-94

89.0

1994-95

83.3

1995-96

75.6

1996-97

70.8

1997-98

62.7

1998-99

55.5

1999-2000

49.3

2000-2001

40.4

2001-2002

35.0

2002-2003

29.5

2003-2004

25.0

2004-2005

20.4

2005-2006

15.6

2006-2007

11.8

2007-2008

7.4

2008-2009

3.1

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order corresponds to an Order (S.I. 2009/608) made by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions under sections 148(3) and (4) and 189(1), (4) and (5) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992. It directs that the earnings factors relevant to the calculation of the additional pension in the rate of any long-term benefit or of any guaranteed minimum pension, or to any other calculation required under Part III of the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993 are to be increased for the tax years specified in the Schedule to this Order by the percentage of their amount specified in that Schedule. The percentages for the tax years from and including 2000-2001 are also relevant for the purposes of revaluing state scheme pension debits and credits in accordance with sections 45B(6), 55A(5) and 55B(6) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992 (“the 1992 Act”). The percentage for the tax year 2008-2009 is 3.1 per cent. and those for earlier tax years have been increased so that the earnings factors for those years are revalued at 2008-2009 earnings levels.

This Order also provides for the rounding of fractional amounts for earnings factors relevant to the calculation of the additional pension in the rate of any long-term benefit. Rounding for the purpose of the calculation of any guaranteed minimum pension is not required by virtue of section 23(2) of the 1992 Act.