| Welfare Reform Bill - continued | House of Commons |
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Mr Jim Murphy 107 Schedule 3, page 63, line 8, at end insert— ‘Local Government Act 2000 (c. 22) 7C In section 94 of the Local Government Act 2000 (disclosure of information), in subsection (1) (benefit information which may be disclosed), for “or state pension credit” substitute “, state pension credit or an income-related employment and support allowance.’. Mr Jim Murphy 108 Schedule 3, page 63, line 8, at end insert— ‘Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 (asp 4) 7D (1) The Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 is amended as follows. (2) In section 39(1)(a) (which excepts from matters which may be managed those relating to benefit under the Contributions and Benefits Act), at end insert “or Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act 2006”. (3) In section 41(a) (duties of managers in relation to matters which may be managed), at end insert “or Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act 2006”.’. Mr Jim Murphy 109 Schedule 3, page 63, line 8, at end insert— ‘Social Security Fraud Act 2001 (c. 11) 7E (1) Section 9 of the Social Security Fraud Act 2001 (effect of offence on benefits of members of offender’s family) is amended as follows. (2) In subsection (1) (benefits to which section applies), after paragraph (bb) insert— “(bc) employment and support allowance;”. (3) After subsection (4A) insert— “(4B) In relation to cases in which the benefit is employment and support allowance, the provision that may be made by virtue of subsection (2) is provision that, in the case of the offender’s family member, any income-related allowance shall be payable, during the whole or a part of any period comprised in the relevant period, as if one or more of the following applied— (a) the rate of the allowance were such reduced rate as may be prescribed; (b) the allowance were payable only if there is compliance by the offender or the offender’s family member, or both of them, with such obligations with respect to the provision of information as may be imposed by the regulations; (c) the allowance were payable only if circumstances are otherwise such as may be prescribed.”’. Danny Alexander
197 Schedule 4, page 65, line 30, leave out paragraph 6. New CLauses and new Schedules Relating to part 1 Recovery of sums in respect of maintenance Mr Jim Murphy NC1 To move the following Clause:— ‘(1) Regulations may make provision for the court to have power to make a recovery order against any person where an award of income-related allowance has been made to that person’s spouse or civil partner. (2) The reference in subsection (1) to a recovery order is to an order requiring the person against whom it is made to make payments to the Secretary of State or to such other person or persons as the court may determine. (3) Regulations under subsection (1) may include— (a) provision as to the matters to which the court is, or is not, to have regard in determining any application under the regulations; (b) provision as to the enforcement of orders under the regulations; (c) provision for the transfer by the Secretary of State of the right to receive payments under, and to exercise rights in relation to, orders under the regulations. (4) In this section, “the court” means— (a) in relation to England and Wales, a magistrates’ court; (b) in relation to Scotland, the sheriff.’. Deemed entitlement for other purposes Mr Jim Murphy NC2 To move the following Clause:— ‘Regulations may provide for a person who would be
entitled to an employment and support allowance but for the operation
of any provision of, or made under, this Part, the Administration Act
or Chapter 2 of Part 1 of the Employment retention of disabled people John Robertson NC3 To move the following Clause:— ‘(1) The Secretary of State shall make regulations for the purposes of retaining disabled people in employment, entitling a disabled employee who satisfies specified conditions to receive under this section— (a) employment assessment, (b) rehabilitation, and (c) retraining. (2) An employee who exercises his right under subsection (1)— (a) is entitled, for such purposes and to such extent as may be prescribed, to the benefits of the terms and conditions which would have been applied, if he had not been undertaking activities in relation to paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (1), (b) is bound, for such purposes and to such extent as may be prescribed, by obligations arising under those terms and conditions; and (c) is eligible after undertaking activities in relation to paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (1) to a job of a prescribed kind. (3) For the purpose of this Clause “disabled” has the meaning prescribed in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.’. Reports to Parliament (No.2) Mr David Ruffley
NC5 To move the following Clause:— ‘The Secretary of State shall report annually to Parliament on the employment recruitment and employment retention practices of publicly-funded organisations in respect of current and previous claimants of employment and support allowance.’. Interviews and assessments Mr David Ruffley
NC6 To move the following Clause:— ‘It shall be a duty of the Secretary of State to ensure that in respect of interviews and assessments conducted in accordance with Part 1 of this Act (a) claimants are notified of the purpose or purposes of the interview or assessment, (b) those conducting interviews or assessments are qualified in accordance with standards that the Secretary of State shall by regulation prescribe, and (c) account is taken of the circumstance in respect of which claimants fail to attend or complete an interview or assessment.’. Income (disregard) Mr David Ruffley
NC7 To move the following Clause:— ‘The Secretary of State may make regulations providing that— (1) An employment and support allowance shall be payable to a claimant who is a service user and is asked by a public, charitable or educational body concerned with health or social care to advise on service standards and delivery. (2) Activities undertaken in order to provide advice under subsection (1) shall bot be construed as work for the purposes of determining limited capability for work under section 8. (3) In the case of contributory allowance or an income related allowance any fee received in recognition of the service undertaken shall be subject to such disregard or earnings limit as the Secretary of State may prescribe. (4) In the case of contributory allowance or an income related allowance reimbursed expenses shall be disregarded as income in such cases as may be prescribed. (5) Regulations made under section 16(3)(a) shall not apply in relation to advice undertaken in accordance with this section. (6) In this section “service user” means a person with recent experience of using or requiring public services relating to their ill-health, disability or caring responsibilities.’. Danny Alexander
257 Clause 27, page 19, line 15, at end insert ‘and those categories of tenants to whom it applies’. Danny Alexander
258 Clause 27, page 19, line 15, at end insert— ‘( ) The Appropriate Maximum Housing Benefit may not vary according to the age of the claimant.’. Danny Alexander
48 Page 20, line 1, leave out Clause 28. Mr Jim Murphy 67 Clause 29, page 26, line 11, at end insert— ‘( ) For the purposes of subsection (1) a person must be treated as entitled to housing benefit or council tax benefit by virtue of the general conditions of entitlement if— (a) he is not so entitled to that benefit at the time he or his partner ceases to be entitled to the prescribed benefit as mentioned in subsection (1)(b), and (b) his entitlement to housing benefit or council tax benefit (as the case may be) ceased during the prescribed period before that time.’. Danny Alexander
259 Clause 33, page 28, leave out lines 21 to 23. Danny Alexander
144 Clause 34, page 28, line 37, at end insert— ‘( ) Regulations made under subsection (2) may provide for— (a) a requirement by the authority administering the benefit to ensure access to free financial advice and education for any person entitled to housing benefit and receiving direct payments of that benefit, and (b) a requirement for the authority to identify vulnerable claimants, or to allow vulnerable claimants to self-identify, who are unlikely to have sufficient financial management skills for accepting direct payment of housing benefit; and to allow for the payments of benefits to be made to a third party for claimants identified as vulnerable.’. new clauses relating to part 2 Non-dependent deductions Danny Alexander
NC8 To move the following Clause:— ‘(1) The Secretary of State shall make regulations such that the non-dependent deduction for— (a) housing benefit; (b) council tax benefit; and (c) Local Housing Allowance shall be nil where the non-dependent— (i) is in non-remunerative work, or (ii) has a gross income from remunerative work of under £101.00 per week.’. Possession action for rent arrears involving housing benefit Danny Alexander
NC9 To move the following Clause:— ‘(1) Section 7 (orders for possession) of the Housing Act 1988 (c. 50) is amended as follows. (2) In subsection (3), for “subsections (5A) and (6)” substitute “subsections (5A), (6) and (6A)”. (3) In subsection (4), for “subsections (5A) and (6)” substitute “subsections (5A), (6) and (6A)”. (4) After subsection (6), insert— “(6A) If the court is satisfied— (a) that Ground 8 in Part I of Schedule 2 to this Act is established; and (b) that rent is in arrears as mentioned in that Ground as a consequence of a delay or failure in the payment of relevant housing benefit, it shall not make an order for possession unless it considers it reasonable to do so.”. (5) At end insert— “(8) In subsection (6A) above— (a) “relevant housing benefit” means— (i) any rent allowance or rent rebate to which the tenant was entitled in respect of the rent under the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006/213); or (ii) any payment on account of any such entitlement awarded under Regulation 93 of those Regulations; (b) references to delay or failure in the payment of relevant housing benefit do not include such delay or failure so far as referrable to any wilful act or omission of the tenant.”.’. Circumstances in which a person is treated as occupying a dwelling as his home Danny Alexander
NC10 To move the following Clause:— ‘(1) This section applies where a person is moving from a dwelling at which he qualifies for payment of Housing Benefit to another dwelling at which he will qualify for payment of Housing Benefit. (2) Regulations may make provisions that such a person may be treated as occupying both dwellings as his home and be eligible for Housing Benefit in respect of both homes for a period not exceeding four weeks if he could not reasonably have avoided rental liability in respect of the two dwellings. (3) Regulations under subsection (2) may allow for Housing Benefit to be paid in respect of both dwellings for a period exceeding four weeks where the applicant is awaiting the outcome of an application under Part III of the Social Security Act (1988) for a social fund payment to meet a need arising out of the move or in connection with setting up the home in the dwelling.’. Interim payment of rent allowance on account Danny Alexander
NC11 To move the following Clause:— ‘Where a relevant local authority has not determined a claim for rent allowance within 14 days of receipt of that claim, in such circumstances as the Secretary of State may by regulation define, the authority shall make a payment on account of rent allowance.’. Danny Alexander
168 Clause 38, page 31, line 34, after ‘evidence’, insert ‘other than medical evidence’. Danny Alexander
169 Clause 39, page 33, line 11, after second ‘information’, insert ‘excluding medical information’. Danny Alexander
145 Clause 39, page 33, line 23, after ‘function’, insert ‘prescribed by the Secretary of State’. Danny Alexander
146 Clause 39, page 33, line 29, after ‘function’, insert ‘prescribed by the Secretary of State’. Danny Alexander
147 Clause 39, page 34, line 10, at end insert— ‘(10) A person who is the subject of information that has been supplied in accordance with subsection (1) shall be notified in respect of— (a) the information provided, and (b) the person to whom that information has been given.’. Danny Alexander
148 Clause 41, page 35, line 23, leave out subsection (2). Danny Alexander
149 Clause 42, page 35, line 36, leave out subsection (2). Mr Jim Murphy 68 Clause 43, page 36, line 19, at end insert— ‘(1C) An authorisation made for a purpose mentioned in section 109A(2)(a), (c) or (d)— (a) is subject to such restrictions as may be prescribed; (b) is not valid in such circumstances as may be prescribed.’. Mr Jim Murphy 69 Clause 44, page 36, line 32, at end insert ‘unless— (a) the proceedings relate to any benefit or circumstances or any description of benefit or circumstances which the Secretary of State prescribes for the purposes of this paragraph, or (b) the Secretary of State has directed that the authority must not bring the proceedings, and a direction under paragraph (b) may relate to a particular authority or description of authority or to particular proceedings or any description of proceedings.’. Mr Jim Murphy 70 Clause 44, page 36, leave out lines 37 to 40 and insert— ‘(3A) The Secretary of State may continue proceedings which have been brought by an authority under this section as if the proceedings had been brought in his name or he may discontinue the proceedings if— (a) he makes provision under subsection (2)(a), such that the authority would no longer be entitled to bring the proceedings under this section, (b) he gives a direction under subsection (2)(b) in relation to the proceedings, or (c) a condition prescribed under subsection (3) ceases to be satisfied in relation to the proceedings.’. Mr Jim Murphy 71 Clause 44, page 36, line 40, at end insert— ‘( ) In the exercise of its power under subsection (2), a local authority must have regard to the Code for Crown Prosecutors issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions under section 10 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985— (a) in determining whether the proceedings should be instituted; (b) in determining what charges should be preferred; (c) in considering what representations to make to a magistrates’ court about mode of trial; (d) in determining whether to discontinue proceedings.’. Mr Jim Murphy 110 Schedule 6, page 70, line 16, at end insert— ‘1A A person is not a relevant employer in relation to a person disabled by a disease to which this Act applies if the disabled person has had no period of employment with him which is a qualifying period of employment.’. Mr Jim Murphy 111 Schedule 8, page 74, line 9, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 112 Schedule 8, page 74, line 12, before ‘Section’ insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 113 Schedule 8, page 74, line 38, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 114 Schedule 8, page 74, line 38, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 115 Schedule 8, page 74, line 38, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 116 Schedule 8, page 74, line 38, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 117 Schedule 8, page 74, line 38, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 118 Schedule 8, page 74, line 38, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 119 Schedule 8, page 74, line 41, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 120 Schedule 8, page 74, line 41, at end insert—
Mr Jim Murphy 121 Schedule 8, page 74, line 41, at end insert—
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| © Parliamentary copyright 2006 | Prepared: 24 October 2006 |