Social Security and Housing Benefits Act 1982

29 Variation of needs allowances

(1) In each review period the Secretary of State shall review, for the purpose of determining whether they have retained their value, both the main and housing elements of any needs allowances specified in regulations made under section 28(1) above.

(2) Following the reviews for any review period the Secretary of State may prepare and lay before Parliament a draft of regulations under section 28(1) above increasing one or more needs allowances by such amount as he considers appropriate; and any draft regulations so prepared shall be framed so as to bring the increases in the needs allowances to which they relate into force before the end of the review period.

(3) If draft regulations laid before Parliament in pursuance of this section are approved by a resolution of each House, the Secretary of State shall make regulations in the form of the draft.

(4) If after completing the reviews for any review period the Secretary of State considers that the main or housing elements of any needs allowances will not have retained their value at the end of that period, but decides—

(a) not to prepare and lay before Parliament a draft of regulations increasing one or more of those allowances ; or

(b) to prepare and so lay the draft of regulations which provide for no increase in any one or more of those allowances, or for an increase in any of them which is less than the appropriate amount,

he shall, unless in his opinion the amount by which those elements will not have retained their value or, as the case may be, the amount by which the increase is less than the appropriate amount is inconsiderable, lay before Parliament a report explaining his reasons for so deciding.

(5) In this section—

• " appropriate amount", in relation to a needs allowance, means the amount by which the allowance would, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, have to be increased in order to restore the value at the end of the review period of such of its main and housing elements as, in his opinion, will not have retained their value at the end of that period ;

• " housing element " and " main element ", in relation to a needs allowance, mean respectively—

  (a)

  the part of that allowance which, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, represents housing costs; and

  (b)

  the remaining part of that allowance ;

• " needs allowance " means an amount to be allowed, in the determination of rebates or allowances, for the needs of an occupier and (where appropriate) the needs of any other person or persons whose needs fall to be aggregated with his;

• " prices " does not include housing costs ;

• " review period " means a period of twelve months ending with 30th November in the year 1983 or any subsequent year;

• " value "—

  (a)

  in relation to the main element of a needs allowance, means value in relation to the general level of prices obtaining in Great Britain; and

  (b)

  in relation to the housing element of such an allowance, means value in relation to the general level of housing costs so obtaining.

(6) For the purpose of carrying out the reviews for any review period the Secretary of State shall estimate the general level of prices obtaining in Great Britain and the general level of housing costs so obtaining in such manner as he thinks fit.