The Jobseeker’s Allowance (Amendment) Regulations 1999

Statutory Instruments

1999 No. 530

SOCIAL SECURITY

The Jobseeker’s Allowance (Amendment) Regulations 1999

Made

3rd March 1999

Laid before Parliament

4th March 1999

Coming into force

25th March 1999

The Secretary of State for Education and Employment, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 8(2) of the Jobseekers Act 1995(1), and after agreement by the Social Security Advisory Committee that proposals in respect of these Regulations should not be referred to it(2), hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Jobseeker’s Allowance (Amendment) Regulations 1999 and shall come into force on 25th March 1999.

Entitlement to a jobseeker’s allowance ceasing on a failure to comply

2.  For regulation 25(1)(b)(i) of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations 1996(3) there shall be substituted the following–

“(i) the claimant attends on the day specified in a notice under regulation 23 but fails to attend at the time specified in that notice (other than a notice requiring attendance under an employment programme or a training scheme), and the Secretary of State has informed the claimant in writing that a failure to attend, on the next occasion on which he is required to attend, at the time specified in such a notice may result in his entitlement to a jobseeker’s allowance ceasing, and”.

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Education and Employment

Andrew Smith

Minister of State,

Department for Education and Employment

3rd March 1999

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (S.I. 1996/207) (“the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations”).

In particular they provide that where a claimant who is required to attend at a place and time specified in a notice under regulation 23 of the Jobseeker’s Allowance Regulations (for example, a fortnightly attendance at a Jobcentre) attends on the right day but at the wrong time, his entitlement will cease if, having then received a written warning, he attends at the wrong time again on the next due date. The effect of these Regulations is also to clarify that a claimant fails to attend on the required day at all, his entitlement may cease without him receiving a written warning. These Regulations do not apply to attendance on an employment programme or training scheme because such a failure to attend is the subject of separate regulations.

(1)

1995 c. 18.

(2)

See sections 170 and 173(1)(b) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c. 5); paragraph 67 of Schedule 2 to the Jobseekers Act 1995 added that Act to the list of “relevant enactments” in respect of which regulations must normally be referred to the Committee.

(3)

S.I. 1996/207.