The Social Security (Maternity Benefit) Regulations 1975

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) These regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Maternity Benefit) Regulations 1975 and shall come into operation on 6th April 1975.

(2) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

“the Act” means the Social Security Act 1975;

[F1 “child benefit” means benefit under Part I of the Child Benefit Act 1975;]

“the determining authority” means, as the case may require, the insurance officer, local tribunal or a Commissioner by whom the relevant question falls to be determined under Part III of the Act;

“expected week of confinement” means, in relation to a woman who is pregnant, the week in which it is to be expected that she will be confined and, in relation to a woman who has been confined, the week in which it was to have been expected that she would be confined;

[F1 “qualifying period” has the meaning assigned to it in regulation 3B;]

[F1 “serving member of the forces” has the same meaning as in regulation 1(2) of the Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 1979 except that it does not include:—

(a)

a member of any territorial or reserve force mentioned in Part I of Schedule 3 to those regulations who is not undergoing training or instruction as such a member for a continuous period exceeding 72 consecutive hours, or

(b)

a member of the Ulster Defence Regiment who is neither serving also as a member of any of the regular naval, military or air forces of the Crown, nor on the full-time permanent staff of that regiment, nor serving or undergoing training in that regiment for a continuous period exceeding 72 consecutive hours;]

and other expressions have the same meanings as in the Act.

[F2 (2A) For the purposes of regulations 3, 3A and 3B if, at the beginning of any day, a woman is either present in or absent from Great Britain, that state of affairs shall be treated as continuing throughout that day.]

(3) Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in these regulations—

(a) to a numbered section or Schedule is to the section of or, as the case may be, the Schedule to the Act bearing that number;

(b) to a numbered regulation is a reference to the regulation bearing that number in these regulations and any reference in a regulation to a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph of that regulation bearing that number;

(c) any provision made by or contained in any enactment or instrument shall be construed as a reference to that provision as amended or extended by any enactment or instrument and as including a reference to any provision which it re-enacts or replaces, or which may re-enact or replace it, with or without modification.

(4) The rules for the construction of Acts of Parliament contained in the Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply for the purposes of the interpretation of these regulations as they apply for the purposes of the interpretation of an Act of Parliament.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in reg. 1(2) inserted (1.4.1982) by The Social Security (Maternity Grant) Regulations 1981 (S.I. 1981/1157), reg. 1, 2(2)

F2 Reg. 1(2A) inserted (1.4.1982) by The Social Security (Maternity Grant) Regulations 1981 (S.I. 1981/1157), reg. 1, 2(3)