The Income-related Benefits (Subsidy to Authorities) Order 1998

Interpretation of Part III

11.—(1) In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires—

“allowance” means a rent allowance;

“board and lodging accommodation” means—

(a)

accommodation provided for a charge which is inclusive of the provision of that accommodation and at least some cooked or prepared meals which are both cooked or prepared and consumed in that accommodation or associated premises; or

(b)

accommodation provided in a hotel, guest house, lodging house or some similar establishment,

but it does not include accommodation in a residential care home or nursing home within the meaning of regulation 19(3) of the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987(1) nor in a hostel within the meaning of regulation 12A of the Housing Benefit Regulations(2);

“the Community Charge Benefits Regulations” means the Community Charge Benefits (General) Regulations 1989(3);

“the Council Tax Benefit Regulations” means the Council Tax Benefit (General) Regulations 1992(4);

“the Housing Benefit Regulations” means the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations 1987(5);

“overpayment” includes excess benefits under the Community Charge Benefits Regulations and excess benefit under the Council Tax Benefit Regulations as well as overpayments under the Housing Benefit Regulations and any reference in this Order to “overpayment” in relation to any of the 1989 Order, the Housing Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1990 (S.I. 1990/785), the Housing Benefit and Community Charge Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1991 (S.I. 1991/587), the Housing Benefit and Community Charge Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1992 (S.I. 1992/739), the Housing Benefit and Community Charge Benefit (Subsidy) (No.2) Order 1993 (S.I. 1993/935), the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1994 (S.I. 1994/523), the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1995 (S.I. 1995/872), the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1996 (S.I. 1996/1217) and the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1997 (S.I. 1997/1004)">previous Orders shall bear the meaning it has in this Order;

“period overrun” has the meaning assigned to it by paragraph 1 of Schedule 3;

“rebate” means a rent rebate excluding, in the case of England and Wales, any Housing Revenue Account rebates(6);

“the Rent Officers Order” means the Rent Officers (Housing Benefits Functions) Order 1997(7) or the Rent Officers (Housing Benefits Functions) (Scotland) Order 1997(8), as the case may be;

“the Rent Officers Order 1995” means the Rent Officers (Additional Functions) Order 1995(9) or the Rent Officers (Additional Functions) (Scotland) Order 1995(10), as the case may be;

“scheme” means the housing benefit scheme or council tax benefit scheme, as the case may be, as prescribed under section 123(1) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992(11),

and other expressions used in this Part and in the Housing Benefit Regulations or Council Tax Benefit Regulations, as the case may be, shall have the same meanings in this Part as they have in those Regulations.

(2) In this Part

• “qualifying expenditure” means, in relation to an authority, the total of relevant benefit, including any payments under regulation 91 of the Housing Benefit Regulations (payments on account of a rent allowance)(12) and any extended payments, lawfully paid by the authority during the relevant year, less—

  (a)

  the deduction, if any, calculated for that authority in article 15;

  (b)

  any deductions specified in article 19 relevant to that authority, and

  (c)

  where, under sections 134(8)(13) (arrangements for housing benefit) or 139(6)(14) (arrangements for council tax benefit) of the Act, as the case may be, the authority has modified any part of a scheme it administers, any amount by which the total of relevant benefit paid under that scheme during the relevant year by it exceeds the total it would have paid if the scheme had not been so modified.

(1)

S.I. 1987/1967; relevant amending instruments are S.I. 1988/663, 1445, 2022, 1989/1678, 1992/3147 and 1993/2119.

(2)

Regulation 12A was inserted by regulation 5 of S.I. 1990/546; relevant amending instrument is S.I. 1995/560.

(3)

S.I. 1989/1321, amended by S.I. 1990/834, 835, 1549, 1657, 1773, 1991/234, 849, 1599, 2742, 2910, 1992/432, 1026, 1101, 1326, 1385, 2148 and 1993/1105.

(4)

S.I. 1992/1814, amended by S.I. 1993/349, 688, 963, 1150, 1249, 1540, 2118, 1994/470, 578, 1925, 2137 and 3061, 1995/511, 559, 560, 625, 626, 1339, 1742, 2303, 3282, 1996/30, 462, 1510, 2006, 2432, 2518, 1997/65, 852, 1671, 1790, 1841, 2434 and 2676.

(5)

S.I. 1987/1971, amended by S.I. 1988/661, 909, 1444, 1843, 1971, 1989/43, 416, 566, 1017, 1322, 1990/546, 671, 1549, 1657, 1775, 2564, 1991/235, 1599, 2910, 1992/50, 201, 432, 1026, 1101, 1326, 1585, 2147, 1993/317, 518, 963, 1150, 1249, 1540, 2118, 1994/470, 578, 1003, 2137, 3061, 1995/511, 559, 560, 625, 626, 1339, 1644, 1742, 2303, 2868, 3282, 1996/30, 194, 462, 965, 1510, 1944, 2006, 2432, 2518, 1997/65, 85, 852, 1671, 1790, 1974, 1975, 2197, 2434, 2435, 2619 and 2676.

(6)

See the meaning of “relevant benefit” in section 140B(2) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992, inserted by paragraph 4 of Schedule 12 to the Housing Act 1996 (c. 52).

(7)

S.I. 1997/1984.

(8)

S.I. 1997/1995.

(9)

S.I. 1995/1642, amended by S.I. 1995/2365, 3148, 1996/959, 1997/1000 and 1984.

(10)

S.I. 1995/1643, amended by S.I.1995/2361, 3185, 1996/975, 1997/1003 and 1995.

(11)

1992 c. 4; amended by the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (c. 14), Schedule 9, paragraph 1(1).

(12)

Regulation 91 was amended by S.I. 1995/2868.

(13)

Section 134(8) allows modification of the housing benefit scheme so as to provide for the disregard from income of a war disablement pension or a war widow’s pension.

(14)

Section 139(6) allows modification of the council tax benefit scheme so as to provide for the disregard from income of a war disablement pension or a war widow’s pension; it was amended by the Local Government Finance Act 1992, Schedule 9, paragraph 20.