The Income Support (General) Amendment No. 2 Regulations 1988

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations further amend the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987.

They provide for an increase in the applicable amount of persons who, had the amendments made by regulation 3(b) been in force on the introduction of the scheme, would have been entitled to a transitional addition and persons who had a reduced or no transitional addition owing to their temporary absence from home in the week before or after the introduction (regulation 2).

They also provide, in the calculation of capital, for the disregard, for a period of 26 weeks of the claimant’s interest in his former home where he has left that home following his estrangement or divorce from his former partner; for the disregard, for such period or longer, of property where he is taking steps to dispose of it or to obtain possession of it or essential repairs are needed to make it fit for occupation (regulation 3(b)); and for the disregard of any premises occupied by a former partner from whom the claimant is neither estranged nor divorced (regulation 3(a)).

These Regulations are made before the expiry of 12 months from the commencement of the enactment under which they are made; they are accordingly exempt by section 61(5) of the Social Security Act 1986 from reference to the Social Security Advisory Committee and have not been so referred.