The Housing Benefit (General) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)

These Regulations further amend the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987.

Regulation 2 amends regulation 7(1)(h). A person who is liable to make payments in respect of a dwelling shall be treated as not being so liable for housing benefit purposes where the claimant or his partner owned that dwelling before they rented it unless, where the claimant demonstrates that he could not have continued to live there without selling the property, more than five years elapses between the date on which the claimant or his partner relinquished ownership of the property and the date on which housing benefit is claimed.

Regulation 3 substitutes regulation 10(3) which specifies how a claimant’s eligible rent is established for housing benefit purposes.

Regulation 4 substitutes regulation 11(3A) and (11) which specify how a claimant’s maximum rent is established for housing benefit purposes.

Regulation 5 substitutes regulation 61(2). A claimant’s maximum housing benefit may be increased if a maximum rent has been determined in respect of him and he, or a member of his family, would suffer exceptional hardship. In determining such an increase the Northern Ireland Housing Executive shall not include any service charges which remain, in any event, ineligible.

Regulation 6 makes a technical amendment to correct a reference within regulation 102.

Regulation 7 substitutes paragraph 2(2) of Schedule 1B. The Northern Ireland Housing Executive must make a fresh determination in respect of a continuous claim which has lasted 52 weeks or more when the previous determination has ceased to be applicable.

Regulation 8 makes transitional provision for those cases in respect of which the revocation of regulation 12 (restriction on rent increases) of the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1987 did not have effect.

These Regulations 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 Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992, are not subject to the requirement of section 149(2) of that Act for prior reference to the Social Security Advisory Committee.

These Regulations do not impose any charge on business.