|
| |
|
35 | Duty to send inspection reports to the Secretary of State |
| |
(1) | In section 13A of the Local Government Act 1999 (c. 27) (reports of inspections |
| |
by Auditor General for Wales), after subsection (4) insert— |
| |
“(4A) | If a report relates to any extent to the administration of housing benefit |
| |
or council tax benefit and the Auditor General for Wales thinks fit to do |
| 5 |
so, he shall as soon as reasonably practicable send a copy of the report |
| |
to the Secretary of State.” |
| |
(2) | In section 29 of that Act (modifications for Wales), after subsection (2) insert— |
| |
“(2A) | Subsection (1)(a) does not apply to section 13A(4A).” |
| |
36 | Directions by Secretary of State |
| 10 |
(1) | Section 139D of the Administration Act (power to give directions) is amended |
| |
in accordance with subsections (2) to (8) below. |
| |
(2) | In subsection (1) (reports that trigger the section), for paragraph (c) |
| |
| |
“(c) | a copy of a report under section 102(1)(b) or (c) of the Local |
| 15 |
Government (Scotland) Act 1973 which to any extent relates to |
| |
the administration of benefit has been sent to a local authority |
| |
and the Secretary of State under section 102(2) of that Act;”. |
| |
(3) | In that subsection (1), after paragraph (c) insert— |
| |
“(ca) | a copy of a report which has been sent to a local authority under |
| 20 |
section 13A(3) of the Local Government Act 1999 and to the |
| |
Secretary of State under section 13A(4A) of that Act;”. |
| |
(4) | In subsection (2) for “invite” substitute “require”. |
| |
(5) | After subsection (2) insert— |
| |
“(2A) | A requirement under subsection (2) above may specify— |
| 25 |
(a) | any information or description of information to be provided; |
| |
(b) | the form and manner in which the information is to be |
| |
| |
(2B) | The authority must respond to a requirement under subsection (2) |
| |
above before the end of such period (not less than one month after the |
| 30 |
day on which the requirement is made) as the Secretary of State |
| |
specifies in the requirement. |
| |
(2C) | The Secretary of State may extend the period specified under |
| |
| |
(6) | For subsection (3) substitute— |
| 35 |
| |
| |
(b) | any proposals made by the authority in response to it, and |
| |
(c) | any other information he thinks is relevant, |
| |
| the Secretary of State may give directions to the authority under |
| 40 |
subsection (3A) or (3B) or both. |
| |
(3A) | Directions under this subsection are directions as to— |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
(a) | standards which the authority is to attain in the prevention and |
| |
detection of fraud relating to benefit or otherwise in the |
| |
administration of benefit; |
| |
(b) | the time within which the standards are to be attained. |
| |
(3B) | Directions under this subsection are directions to take such action as the |
| 5 |
Secretary of State thinks necessary or expedient for the purpose of |
| |
improving the authority’s exercise of its functions— |
| |
(a) | in relation to the prevention and detection of fraud relating to |
| |
| |
(b) | otherwise in relation to the administration of benefit. |
| 10 |
(3C) | A direction under subsection (3B) may specify the time within which |
| |
| |
(7) | In subsection (4), for “subsection (3)” substitute “subsection (3A)”. |
| |
(8) | After subsection (4) insert— |
| |
“(4A) | If the Secretary of State proposes to give a direction under this section |
| 15 |
he must give the authority to which the direction is to be addressed an |
| |
opportunity to make representations about the proposed direction. |
| |
(4B) | The Secretary of State may specify a period within which |
| |
representations mentioned in subsection (4A) above must be made. |
| |
(4C) | The Secretary of State may extend a period specified under subsection |
| 20 |
| |
(4D) | Subsections (4A) to (4C) do not apply if the Secretary of State thinks that |
| |
it is necessary for a direction to be given as a matter of urgency. |
| |
(4E) | If the Secretary of State acts under subsection (4D) he must give in |
| |
writing to the authority to which the direction is addressed his reasons |
| 25 |
| |
(9) | After section 139D of that Act insert— |
| |
“139DA | Directions: variation and revocation |
| |
(1) | The Secretary of State may at any time in accordance with this section |
| |
vary or revoke a direction under section 139D above. |
| 30 |
(2) | A direction may be varied or revoked only if the Secretary of State |
| |
thinks it is necessary to do so— |
| |
(a) | in consequence of representations made by the authority to |
| |
which the direction is addressed, |
| |
(b) | to rectify an omission or error, or |
| 35 |
(c) | in consequence of a material change in circumstances. |
| |
(3) | The Secretary of State must not vary a direction unless he first— |
| |
(a) | sends a copy of the proposed variation to the authority |
| |
| |
(b) | gives the authority his reasons for making the variation, and |
| 40 |
(c) | gives the authority an opportunity to make representations |
| |
about the proposed variation. |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
(4) | The Secretary of State may specify a period of not less than one month |
| |
within which representations mentioned in subsection (3)(c) above |
| |
| |
(5) | The Secretary of State may extend a period specified under subsection |
| |
| 5 |
37 | Minor and consequential amendments relating to Part 2 |
| |
Schedule 5 (which makes miscellaneous minor amendments and amendments |
| |
consequential on this Part) has effect. |
| |
| |
Social security administration: general |
| 10 |
Sharing of social security information |
| |
38 | Social security information |
| |
(1) | In the Administration Act, after section 7A (sharing of functions as regards |
| |
certain claims and information) insert— |
| |
“7B | Use of social security information |
| 15 |
(1) | A relevant authority may use for a relevant purpose any social security |
| |
information which it holds. |
| |
(2) | Regulations may make provision as to the procedure to be followed by |
| |
a relevant authority for the purposes of any function it has relating to |
| |
the administration of a specified benefit if the authority holds social |
| 20 |
security information which— |
| |
(a) | is relevant for the purposes of anything which may or must be |
| |
done by the authority in connection with a claim for or an |
| |
award of the benefit, and |
| |
(b) | was used by another relevant authority in connection with a |
| 25 |
claim for or an award of a different specified benefit or was |
| |
verified by that other authority in accordance with regulations |
| |
under section 7A(2)(e) above. |
| |
(3) | A relevant purpose is any prescribed purpose which relates to a claim |
| |
which is made or which could be made for a specified benefit. |
| 30 |
(4) | Social security information means— |
| |
(a) | information relating to social security, child support or war |
| |
| |
(b) | evidence obtained in connection with a claim for or an award of |
| |
| 35 |
(5) | A specified benefit is a benefit which is specified in regulations for the |
| |
purposes of this section. |
| |
(6) | Expressions used in this section and in section 7A have the same |
| |
meaning in this section as in that section. |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
(7) | This section does not affect any power which exists apart from this |
| |
section to use for one purpose social security information obtained in |
| |
connection with another purpose.” |
| |
(2) | In section 7A of that Act— |
| |
(a) | in subsection (1) after paragraph (b) insert— |
| 5 |
“(c) | as regards any relevant benefit, for claims for that |
| |
| |
(i) | a county council in England, |
| |
(ii) | a person providing services to a county council |
| |
| 10 |
(iii) | a person authorised to exercise any function a |
| |
county council in England has under this |
| |
| |
(b) | in subsection (2) after paragraph (d) insert— |
| |
“(e) | the verification by a relevant authority of information or |
| 15 |
evidence supplied to or obtained by the authority in |
| |
connection with a claim for or an award of a relevant |
| |
| |
(c) | in subsection (3) for “and (d)” substitute “, (d) and (e)”; |
| |
(d) | in subsection (3)(a) for “(1)(a) or (b)” substitute “(1)(a), (b) or (c)”; |
| 20 |
(e) | in subsection (6) for paragraph (c) substitute— |
| |
“(c) | “relevant authority” means— |
| |
(i) | a Minister of the Crown; |
| |
| |
(iii) | a county council in England; |
| 25 |
(iv) | a person providing services to a person |
| |
mentioned in sub-paragraphs (i) to (iii); |
| |
(v) | a person authorised to exercise any function of a |
| |
local authority relating to housing benefit or |
| |
| 30 |
(vi) | a person authorised to exercise any function a |
| |
county council in England has under this |
| |
| |
(3) | In Part 1 of Schedule 4 to that Act (persons employed in social security |
| |
administration or adjudication), under the heading “Local authorities etc” after |
| 35 |
the entry relating to a person authorised under section 139A(1) of that Act |
| |
| |
“A member, officer or employee of a county council in England who |
| |
| |
(a) | any function conferred on the county council by regulations |
| 40 |
made under section 7A of this Act; |
| |
(b) | any function in connection with a purpose specified in |
| |
regulations made under section 7B of this Act. |
| |
A person authorised to exercise any such function of such a county |
| |
council or an employee of such a person.” |
| 45 |
39 | Information relating to certain benefits |
| |
(1) | Information falling within subsection (3) may be supplied by the person who |
| |
holds it to a person falling within subsection (4) for purposes connected with |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
the application of grant paid under a relevant enactment towards expenditure |
| |
incurred by the recipient of the grant— |
| |
(a) | in providing, or contributing to the provision of, welfare services, or |
| |
(b) | in connection with such welfare services. |
| |
(2) | Information falling within subsection (3) which is held for a prescribed |
| 5 |
purpose by a person falling within any of paragraphs (c) to (h) of subsection (4) |
| |
| |
(a) | used by that person for another prescribed purpose; |
| |
(b) | provided to another such person for use in relation to the same or |
| |
another prescribed purpose. |
| 10 |
(3) | The information is any information which is held by a person falling within |
| |
subsection (4) relating to— |
| |
| |
(b) | income-based jobseeker’s allowance; |
| |
(c) | income-related employment and support allowance; |
| 15 |
(d) | state pension credit; |
| |
| |
| |
| |
(a) | the Secretary of State; |
| 20 |
(b) | a person providing services to the Secretary of State; |
| |
(c) | an authority administering housing benefit; |
| |
(d) | a person authorised to exercise any function of such an authority |
| |
relating to housing benefit; |
| |
(e) | a person providing to such an authority services relating to housing |
| 25 |
| |
(f) | a local authority to which any grant is or will be paid as mentioned in |
| |
| |
(g) | a person authorised to exercise any function of such an authority |
| |
| 30 |
(h) | a person providing to such an authority services relating to any such |
| |
| |
(5) | Information which is supplied under subsection (1) to an authority or other |
| |
person falling within subsection (4)(f), (g) or (h) may be supplied by the |
| |
authority or person to a person who provides qualifying welfare services for |
| 35 |
purposes connected with the provision of those services. |
| |
(6) | A person provides qualifying welfare services if— |
| |
(a) | he provides welfare services, |
| |
(b) | a local authority contribute or will contribute to the expenditure |
| |
incurred by him in providing those services, and |
| 40 |
(c) | that contribution is or will be derived (in whole or in part) from any |
| |
grant which is or will be paid to the authority as mentioned in |
| |
| |
(7) | A relevant enactment is an enactment specified by order made by the Secretary |
| |
of State; and the power to make an order under this subsection is exercisable |
| 45 |
by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of |
| |
either House of Parliament. |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
(8) | In subsection (2) a prescribed purpose is a purpose relating to housing benefit |
| |
or welfare services which is prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of |
| |
State by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution |
| |
of either House of Parliament. |
| |
(9) | The power to make an order or regulations under this section includes |
| 5 |
| |
(a) | to make different provision for different purposes; |
| |
(b) | to make such incidental, supplementary, consequential, transitional or |
| |
savings provision as the Secretary of State thinks necessary or |
| |
| 10 |
| |
“income-based jobseeker’s allowance” has the same meaning as in the |
| |
Jobseekers Act 1995 (c. 18); |
| |
“income-related employment and support allowance” means an income- |
| |
related allowance under Part 1; |
| 15 |
| |
(a) | in relation to England, a county council, a district council, a |
| |
London borough council, the Common Council of the City of |
| |
London or the Council of the Isles of Scilly; |
| |
(b) | in relation to Wales, a county council or a county borough |
| 20 |
| |
“welfare services” includes services which provide support, assistance, |
| |
advice or counselling to individuals with particular needs. |
| |
(11) | In the Local Government Act 2000 (c. 22), sections 94 (disclosure of |
| |
information) and 95 (unauthorised disclosure of information) are omitted. |
| 25 |
40 | Unlawful disclosure of certain information |
| |
(1) | A person to whom subsection (2) applies is guilty of an offence if he discloses |
| |
without lawful authority any information— |
| |
(a) | which comes to him by virtue of section 39(1), (2) or (5), and |
| |
(b) | which relates to a particular person. |
| 30 |
(2) | This subsection applies to— |
| |
(a) | a person mentioned in section 39(4)(f) to (h); |
| |
(b) | a person who provides qualifying welfare services (within the meaning |
| |
| |
(c) | a person who is or has been a director, member of the committee of |
| 35 |
management, manager, secretary or other similar officer of a person |
| |
mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b); |
| |
(d) | a person who is or has been an employee of a person mentioned in |
| |
| |
(3) | A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable— |
| 40 |
(a) | on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding |
| |
2 years or a fine or both, or |
| |
(b) | on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 |
| |
months or a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or both. |
| |
(4) | It is not an offence under this section— |
| 45 |
|
| |
|
| |
|
(a) | to disclose information in the form of a summary or collection of |
| |
information so framed as not to enable information relating to any |
| |
particular person to be ascertained from it; |
| |
(b) | to disclose information which has previously been disclosed to the |
| |
public with lawful authority. |
| 5 |
(5) | It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this section to prove |
| |
that at the time of the alleged offence— |
| |
(a) | he believed that he was making the disclosure in question with lawful |
| |
authority and had no reasonable cause to believe otherwise, or |
| |
(b) | he believed that the information in question had previously been |
| 10 |
disclosed to the public with lawful authority and had no reasonable |
| |
cause to believe otherwise. |
| |
(6) | A disclosure is made with lawful authority if it is so made for the purposes of |
| |
section 123 of the Administration Act. |
| |
(7) | This section does not affect that section. |
| 15 |
(8) | Until the commencement of section 282 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (c. 44) |
| |
(increase in maximum term that may be imposed on summary conviction of |
| |
offence triable either way) the reference in subsection (3)(b) to 12 months must |
| |
be taken to be a reference to six months. |
| |
| 20 |
41 | Recovery of overpaid benefit: Great Britain |
| |
(1) | Section 71 of the Administration Act (overpayments) is amended as follows. |
| |
(2) | Subsection (5) (recovery of overpayments paid into account not recoverable |
| |
under regulations under subsection (4) unless determination of amount is |
| |
reversed on appeal etc. and overpayment is determined on the appeal etc. to be |
| 25 |
so recoverable) ceases to have effect. |
| |
(3) | In subsection (5A) (recovery of overpayments paid in consequence of |
| |
misrepresentation etc. not recoverable under subsection (1) unless |
| |
determination of amount is reversed on appeal etc.) for “under subsection (1) |
| |
above” substitute “under subsection (1) or under regulations under subsection |
| 30 |
| |
42 | Recovery of overpaid child benefit and guardian’s allowance: Northern |
| |
| |
(1) | Section 69 of the Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Act 1992 |
| |
(c. 8) (overpayments) is amended as follows. |
| 35 |
(2) | Subsection (5) (recovery of overpayments paid into account not recoverable |
| |
under regulations under subsection (4) unless determination of amount is |
| |
reversed on appeal etc. and overpayment is determined on the appeal etc. to be |
| |
so recoverable) ceases to have effect. |
| |
(3) | In subsection (5A) (recovery of overpayments paid in consequence of |
| 40 |
misrepresentation etc. not recoverable under subsection (1) unless |
| |
determination of amount is reversed on appeal etc.) for “under subsection (1) |
| |
|
| |
|