The Jobseeker’s Allowance (Amendment) Regulations 1998

Statutory Instruments

1998 No. 71

SOCIAL SECURITY

The Jobseeker’s Allowance (Amendment) Regulations 1998

Made

15th January 1998

Laid before Parliament

23rd January 1998

Coming into force

5th April 1999

The Secretary of State for Social Security, in exercise of the powers conferred on her by sections 21, 35(1) and 36(1) to (4)(a) of, and paragraphs 4 and 10(1) of Schedule 1 to, the Jobseekers Act 1995(1), and of all other powers enabling her in that behalf, after reference to the Social Security Advisory Committee(2), hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Jobseeker’s Allowance (Amendment) Regulations 1998 and shall come into force on 5th April 1999.

(2) In these Regulations, “the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations” means the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996(3).

Amendment of regulation 46 of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations

2.  In regulation 46(2) of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (waiting days), for the number “3” there shall be substituted the number “7”.

Consequential amendment

3.  In regulation 141(2) of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations(4) (circumstances in which an income-based jobseeker’s allowance is payable to a person in hardship), for the word “4th” there shall be substituted the word “8th”.

Transitional provision

4.  Regulations 2 and 3 of these Regulations shall not apply in the case of a person—

(a) who has made a claim for a jobseeker’s allowance before 5th April 1999 or who is treated as having made a claim for a jobseeker’s allowance before that date; and

(b) in respect of whom 5th April 1999 is one of the first three days of a jobseeking period.

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Social Security.

Keith Bradley

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State,

Department of Social Security

15th January 1998

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996 (S.I. 1996/207) by increasing the number of waiting days before which a person may be entitled to a jobseeker’s allowance from three to seven (regulation 2).

Regulation 3 makes a consequential amendment and regulation 4 makes a transitional provision.

The Report of the Social Security Advisory Committee dated 11th November 1997 on the proposals referred to them in these Regulations, together with a statement showing the extent to which these Regulations give effect to the Recommendations of the Committee, and in so far as they do not give effect to them, the reasons why not, are contained in Command Paper Cm. 3829, published by The Stationery Office Limited.

These Regulations do not impose any charge on business.

(1)

1995 c. 18; section 35(1) is an interpretation provision and is cited because of the meanings ascribed to the words “prescribed” and “regulations”.

(2)

See the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c. 5), sections 170 and 172(1); paragraph 67 of Schedule 2 to the Jobseekers Act 1995 added that Act to the list of “relevant enactments” under which proposals in respect of regulations must normally be referred to the Committee.

(3)

S.I. 1996/207.

(4)

Regulation 141(2) was amended by S.I. 1996/1517 and 2538.