Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Income Support (Prescribed Categories of Person) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009 and shall come into operation on 30th December 2009.

(2) In these Regulations “the appointed day” means 30th December 2009.

(3) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(3) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Assembly.

Revocation and Savings

2.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the following provisions of the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(4) are revoked—

(a)regulation 13(2)(b) and (bb)(5) (circumstances in which persons in relevant education are to be entitled to income support);

(b)paragraphs 7(a) and (b) (persons incapable of work), 10(6) (disabled students), 12(7) (deaf students) and 13 (blind persons) of Schedule 1B(8) (prescribed categories of person).

(2) A provision referred to in paragraph (1) (“a relevant provision”) continues to have effect in relation to a person (“P”)—

(a)who immediately before the appointed day, is entitled to an award of income support on the basis of a relevant provision, or

(b)whose claim for income support falls within regulation 2(2)(b)(9), (c) or (d)(10) (claim for an existing benefit) of the Employment and Support Allowance (Transitional Provisions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008(11), or

(c)to whom paragraph (4) applies.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(a), P is entitled to an award of income support on the basis of a relevant provision only where—

(a)before the appointed day the Department determined that a relevant provision applies to P, or

(b)in the cases to which regulation 6(12) (information required for determining capacity for work) or 28(13) (conditions for treating a person as incapable of work until the personal capability assessment is carried out) of the Social Security (Incapacity for Work) (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995(14) applies, before the appointed day the Department was—

(i)provided with the evidence or satisfied on the basis of the information required by regulation 6 of those Regulations, or

(ii)provided with the evidence required by regulation 28(2)(a) of those Regulations and the condition in regulation 28(2)(b) was satisfied, or

(c)in any case to which the regulations referred to in sub-paragraph (b) do not apply, the Department—

(i)before the appointed day received notification from P stating that a relevant provision applies to P, and

(ii)determines on or after that date that the provision concerned applies to P.

(4) This paragraph applies to a person where—

(a)that person had an award of income support which was terminated on or after 27th October 2008;

(b)a relevant provision applied to the person immediately before the award was terminated;

(c)the decision to terminate that award was made as a result of official error, and

(d)that decision is subsequently revised by reason of that error.

(5) In paragraph (4)(c) “official error” has the meaning given in regulation 1(2) (citation, commencement and interpretation) of the Social Security and Child Support (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999(15).

Consequential amendments

3.—(1) Subject to paragraph (6), the following consequential amendments have effect.

(2) In the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland)1987—

(a)in regulation 4ZA(3)(b)(16) (prescribed categories of person) omit “10,” and “12,”;

(b)in regulation 4(2)(c)(ii)(17) and (v)(18) (temporary absence from Northern Ireland) for “persons incapable of work” substitute “persons treated as capable of work and persons entitled to statutory sick pay”;

(c)in regulation 61(1)(19) (interpretation) in paragraph (c) of the definition of “grant income”, omit “10,” and “, 12”;

(d)in regulation 66A(4)(a)(ii)(20) (treatment of student loans) omit “10,” and “, 12”;

(e)in Schedule 1B, for the heading preceding paragraph 7 substitute “Persons treated as capable of work and persons entitled to statutory sick pay”.

(3) In regulation 1(3) (citation, commencement and interpretation) of the Social Security (Work-focused Interviews) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003(21), in paragraph (a) of the definition of “relevant benefit”(22) and in paragraph (b)(ii) of the definition of “specified person”(23), for “persons incapable of work” substitute “persons treated as capable of work and persons entitled to statutory sick pay”.

(4) In regulation 2(1)(24) (entitlement to benefits) of the Children (Leaving Care) Social Security Benefits Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005(25)—

(a)at the end of sub-paragraph (b)(i) add “or”;

(b)omit sub-paragraph (b)(ii);

(c)in sub-paragraph (b)(iii) omit “10,”, “12” and “13,”.

(5) In regulation 1(2) (interpretation) of the Social Security (Incapacity Benefit Work-focused Interviews) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008(26), in paragraph (b)(i) in the definition of “specified benefit” for “persons incapable of work” substitute “persons treated as capable of work and persons entitled to statutory sick pay”.

(6) The amendments made by this regulation do not have effect in relation to a person referred to in regulation 2(2).

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations revoke (subject to savings) provisions of the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 which prescribe that persons who are in relevant education and have a disability, incapable of work, treated as incapable of work, disabled or deaf students or blind are entitled to income support.

The provisions remain in operation for persons in respect of whom a determination that the provision applied to them was made before the 30th December 2009, certain linked claims for income support (including new claims from people entitled to incapacity benefit or severe disablement allowance), cases where information or evidence about incapacity for work required by the Social Security (Incapacity for Work) (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995 was provided before that date, and cases where the Department received notification before that date stating that one of the provisions applies and it is determined that the provision concerned applies.

The provisions are also saved for people whose entitlement to income support was terminated without having regard to whether they met the criteria for the above categories of person before the date these Regulations come into operation (amounting to official error).

The Regulations also make consequential amendments to the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, the Social Security (Work-focused Interviews) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2003, the Children (Leaving Care) Social Security Benefits Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 and the Social Security (Incapacity Benefit Work-focused Interviews) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008.

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.