Amendments to the Income Support (General) Regulations 19872.

(1)

The Income Support (General) Regulations 198710 are amended as follows.

(2)

After the definition of “liable relative” in regulation 2(1) (interpretation), insert—

““local welfare provision” means occasional financial or other assistance given by a local authority, the Scottish Ministers or the Welsh Ministers, or a person authorised to exercise any function of, or provide a service to, them, to or in respect of individuals for the purpose of—

(a)

meeting, or helping to meet, an immediate short term need—

  1. (i)

    arising out of an exceptional event, or exceptional circumstances; and

  2. (ii)

    that requires to be met in order to avoid a risk to the well-being of an individual; or

(b)

enabling individuals to establish or maintain a settled home, where those individuals have been or, without the assistance, might otherwise be—

  1. (i)

    in prison, hospital, a residential care establishment or other institution; or

  2. (ii)

    homeless or otherwise living an unsettled way of life;”.

(3)

In regulation 54 (interpretation) in paragraph (e)(ii) of the definition of “payment”11—

(a)

omit “the payment is”; and

(b)

for “rent, housing costs,” substitute “rent for which housing benefit is payable, housing costs to the extent that they are met under regulation 17(1)(e) or 18(1)(f) (housing costs),”.

(4)

In Schedule 3 (housing costs)12—

(a)

in paragraph 3(7)(c)(ii) (circumstances in which a person is to be treated as occupying a dwelling as his home) after “pending” insert “local welfare provision or”; and

(b)

in paragraph 18(7)(i) (non-dependant deductions) before “employment and support allowance” insert “income-related”.

(5)

In Schedule 9 (sums to be disregarded in the calculation of income other than earnings)—

(a)

after paragraph 3113, insert—

“31A.

Any local welfare provision.”; and

(b)

in paragraph 4614, after “section 13”, insert “, 13A”.

(6)

In Schedule 10 (capital to be disregarded)—

(a)

after paragraph 1815, insert—

“18A.

Any local welfare provision.”; and

(b)

in paragraph 3616, after “section 13”, insert “, 13A”.