The Fines Collection (Disclosure of Information) (Prescribed Benefits) Regulations 2008

Made: 16th December 2008

Laid before Parliament: 18th December 2008

Coming into force: 12th January 2009

The Lord Chancellor, in exercise of the powers conferred by paragraph 9C¹ of Schedule 5 to the Courts Act 2003², makes the following Regulations:

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1

• (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Fines Collection (Disclosure of Information) (Prescribed Benefits) Regulations 2008 and shall come into force on 12 January 2009.

• (2) In these Regulations —

• “contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance”, except in a case to which paragraph (b) of the definition of income-based jobseeker’s allowance applies, means a contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance under Part I of the Jobseekers Act 1995³, but does not include any back to work bonus under section 26 of the Jobseekers Act 1995⁴ which is paid as jobseeker’s allowance;

• “income-based jobseeker’s allowance” means — an income-based jobseeker’s allowance under Part I of the Jobseekers Act 1995; and in a case where, if there was no entitlement to contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance, there would be entitlement to income-based jobseeker’s allowance at the same rate, contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance, but does not include any back to work bonus under section 26 of the Jobseekers Act 1995 which is paid as jobseeker’s allowance;

• “income-related employment and support allowance” means — an income-related allowance under Part 1 of the Welfare Reform Act 2007⁵; and in a case where, if there was no entitlement to contributory employment and support allowance, there would be entitlement to income-related employment and support allowance at the same rate, contributory employment and support allowance;

• “income support” means income support under Part VII of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992⁶, but does not include any back to work bonus under section 26 of the Jobseekers Act 1995 which is paid as income support; and

• “state pension credit” means the benefit of that name payable under State Pension Credit Act 2002⁷.

Prescribed benefits

2

The benefits prescribed for the purposes of paragraphs 9A to 9C of Schedule 5 to the Courts Act 2003 (disclosure of information in connection with application for benefit deductions) are —

• (a) contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance;

• (b) income-based jobseeker’s allowance;

• (c) income-related employment and support allowance;

• (d) income support; and

• (e) state pension credit.

Signed

Signed by authority of the Lord Chancellor

Bridget Prentice — Parliamentary Under Secretary of State — Ministry of Justice — 16th December 2008

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Regulations define a “prescribed benefit” for the purposes of paragraph 9C of Schedule 5 to the Courts Act 2003.

Paragraphs 9A to 9C of Schedule 5 to the Courts Act 2003, which were inserted by section 41 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008, permit the Secretary of State, in response to an information request from a designated officer in a magistrates’ court, to disclose details of, among other things, whether a person is in receipt of a prescribed benefit, in order to assist a court in deciding whether to make an application for benefit deductions.

Footnotes