Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland
1998 No. 232

HOUSING; RATES; SOCIAL SECURITY
The Social Security (Amendment) (Personal Allowances for Children) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998

Made
26th June 1998

Coming into operation in accordance with regulation 1
The Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by sections 122(1), 127(5), 128(8), 131(1) and 171(1), (3) and (4) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992(1), and Articles 6(5), 36(2) and 37(3) of the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995(2) and of all other powers enabling it in that behalf, with the consent of the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland(3) in so far as regulation 2(1) and (2)(b) is concerned, and after agreement by the Social Security Advisory Committee that proposals in respect of that regulation should not be referred to it(4), hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Amendment) (Personal Allowances for Children) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998 and both this regulation and regulation 2 shall, subject to paragraphs (2) and (4), come into operation on 9th November 1998.

(2) In so far as regulation 2 amends the Income Support Regulations then, in the case of a claimant whose benefit week does not commence on 9th November 1998, that regulation shall have effect from the first day of the first benefit week to commence for that claimant after that date.

(3) In paragraph (2) “the Income Support Regulations” means the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(5) and “benefit week”(6) and “claimant” shall have the same meanings as in regulation 2(1) of those Regulations.

(4) In so far as regulation 2 amends the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations then, in the case of a claimant whose benefit week does not commence on 9th November 1998, that regulation shall have effect from the first day of the first benefit week to commence for that claimant after that date.

(5) In paragraph (4) “the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations” means the

Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996(7) and “benefit week”(8) shall have the same meaning as in regulation 1(2) of those Regulations.

(6) Regulation 3 shall come into operation on 10th November 1998 and in relation to any particular claimant for family credit or disability working allowance, that regulation shall have effect, where that claimant has an award of either of those benefits—

(a)which expires on 9th November 1998, on 10th November 1998, or

(b)which expires after 9th November 1998, on the day following the expiration of that award.

(7) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(9) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to a Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Income Support, jobseeker’s allowance and housing benefit: personal allowances in respect of children and young persons

2.—(1) In entry (a) of the table in each of the provisions specified in paragraph (2) (which specify the personal allowances applied in respect of children and young persons when calculating applicable amounts), in column (2), for “£17·30” there shall be substituted “£19·80”.

(2) The provisions specified for the purposes of paragraph (1) are—

(a)paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 2 to the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(10);

(b)paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 2 to the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(11);

(c)paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 1 to the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996(12).

Family credit and disability working allowance: determination of maximum amount

3.  In both paragraph 2(a) of column (2) in Schedule 4 to the Family Credit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987(13) and paragraph 3(a) of column (2) in Schedule 5 to the Disability Working Allowance (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992(14) (maximum amounts for children and young persons), for “£12·35” there shall be substituted “£14·85”.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland on

L.S.
John O'Neill
Assistant Secretary
26th June 1998.

The Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland hereby consents to regulation 2(1) and (2)(b) of the foregoing Regulations.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland on

L.S.
J. Ritchie
Assistant Secretary
26th June 1998.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)
These Regulations further amend the Income Support (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987, the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996, the Family Credit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 and the Disability Working Allowance (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992.
In particular, these Regulations increase by £2·50 the amount of the weekly personal allowances which is applicable in respect of children before the first Monday in September following their eleventh birthday in income support, income-based jobseeker’s allowance and housing benefit (regulation 2).
These Regulations also increase by the same amount, that part of the appropriate maximum amounts of family credit and of disability working allowance which is allowed in respect of children before the first Tuesday in September following their eleventh birthday (regulation 3).
In so far as these Regulations are required, for the purposes of regulation 2(1) and (2)(b) 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.


(1)
1992 c. 7

(2)
S.I. 1995/2705 (N.I. 15)

(3)
See section 171(6A) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Act 1992 as inserted by Article 3(3) of the Social Security (Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Order 1993 (S.I. 1993/1579 (N.I. 8))

(4)
See section 150(1)(b) of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992 c. 8

(5)
S.R. 1987 No. 459; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1988 No. 318, S.R. 1996 No. 476 and S.R. 1998 No. 59

(6)
The definition of “benefit week” was amended by regulation 2(a) of S.R. 1988 No. 318

(7)
S.R. 1996 No. 198; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1996 Nos. 358, 476 and 503 and S.R. 1998 No. 59

(8)
The definition of “benefit week” was amended by regulation 2(2) of S.R. 1996 No. 358 and regulation 2(2)(a) of S.R. 1996 No. 503

(9)
1954 c. 33 (N.I.)

(10)
S.R. 1987 No. 459; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1996 No. 476 and S.R. 1998 No. 59

(11)
S.R. 1987 No. 461; relevant amending Regulations are S.R. 1996 No. 476 and S.R. 1998 No. 73

(12)
S.R. 1996 No. 198; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1996 No. 476 and S.R. 1998 No. 59

(13)
S.R. 1987 No. 463; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1996 No. 476 and S.R. 1998 No. 59

(14)
S.R. 1992 No. 78; relevant amending rules are S.R. 1996 No. 476 and S.R. 1998 No. 59