Social Security and Housing Benefits Act 1982

28 The statutory schemes

(1) The Secretary of State may by regulations make, with the consent of the Treasury—

(a) a scheme (in this Part referred to as "the statutory rate rebate scheme ") for the grant, by rating authorities to persons who occupy as their homes dwellings in respect of which they are liable to make payments by way of rates (whether to those authorities or to other persons), of rebates from those payments (in this Part referred to as rate rebates);

(b) a scheme (in this Part referred to as "the statutory rent rebate scheme") for the grant, by housing authorities to persons who occupy as their homes dwellings in respect of which they are liable to make to those authorities payments otherwise than by way of rates, of rebates from those payments (in this Part referred to as rent rebates); and

(c) a scheme (in this Part referred to as " the statutory rent allowance scheme ") for the grant, by local authorities to persons who occupy as their homes dwellings in the areas of those authorities in respect of which they are liable to make payments not falling within paragraph (a) or (b) above, of allowances towards those payments (in this Part referred to as rent allowances),

being (in each case) rebates or allowances determined in accordance with the provisions of the scheme by reference to the needs and resources of those persons.

(2) Regulations under subsection (1) above may in particular provide—

(a) for treating any person who, without being liable to do so, makes payments in respect of a dwelling as if he were so liable;

(b) for treating any person who occupies a dwelling other wise than as his home as if he occupied it as his home ;

(c) for treating any one or more of the joint occupiers of a dwelling as if he or they were the only occupiers ;

(d) for treating as included in a dwelling any land used for the purposes of the dwelling ;

(e) for enabling any rate rebate or rent allowance to be so applied as to discharge, in whole or in part, the liability to which it relates ;

(f) for enabling any rebate or allowance granted to a person not entitled to it to be recovered by the authority or the Secretary of State, and to be so recovered by deduction from a prescribed benefit; and

(g) for enabling any person to exercise a discretion in dealing with any matter;

and may make such transitional provision as appears to the Secretary of State to be necessary or expedient.

(3) References in this section to payments in respect of dwellings do not include mortgage payments or, in Scotland, payments under heritable securities but, subject to that, they include any payments in respect of dwellings including, in particular—

(a) payments under tenancies of dwellings or licences or, in Scotland, rights or permissions to occupy dwellings; and

(b) payments for services performed or facilities provided for, or rights made available to, the occupiers of dwellings.

(4) In this section—

• " dwelling " means any residential accommodation, whether or not consisting of the whole or part of a building and whether or not comprising separate and self-contained premises;

• " prescribed " means specified in or determined in accordance with regulations.

(5) The provisions of this section and section 30 below have effect in substitution for the following enactments, namely—

(a) Part II of and Schedules 3 and 4 to the [1972 c. 47.] Housing Finance Act 1972, sections 11 to 14 of the [1974 c. 7.] Local Government Act 1974 and section 20 of the [1976 c. 75.] Development of Rural Wales Act 1976 (which make provision, in relation to England and Wales, for rent rebates, rent allowances and rate rebates); and

(b) Part II of and Schedules 2 and 3 to the [1972 c. 46.] Housing (Financial Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1972 and sections 112 to 114 of the [1973 c. 65.] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (which make corresponding provision in relation to Scotland);

and those enactments are accordingly repealed.