The Income-related Benefits (Subsidy to Authorities) Amendment Order 2016

Made: 10th October 2016

Laid before Parliament: 13th October 2016

Coming into force: 18th November 2016

In accordance with section 176(1) of that Act[^f00003], the Secretary of State has consulted with organisations appearing to the Secretary of State to be representative of the authorities concerned.

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1

• (1) This Order may be cited as the Income-related Benefits (Subsidy to Authorities) Amendment Order 2016 and comes into force on 18th November 2016.

• (2) Article 2(2) and Schedule 1 have effect for the purpose of determining subsidy payable for the relevant year beginning with 1st April 2015.

• (3) Articles 2(3) and 3, and Schedules 2, 3 and 4 have effect for the purpose of determining subsidy payable for the relevant year beginning with 1st April 2016.

• (4) Article 4 has effect from 1st April 2016.

• (5) In this Order—

• “the 1998 Order” means the Income-related Benefits (Subsidy to Authorities) Order 1998[^f00004];

• “relevant year” means the period of a year beginning on 1st April in any calendar year in respect of which a claim for subsidy is made.

The amount of an authority’s subsidy

2

• (1) The 1998 Order is amended as follows.

• (2) For Schedule 1 (sums to be used in the calculation of subsidy)[^f00005] substitute the Schedule 1 set out in Schedule 1 to this Order.

• (3) For Schedule 1A (additional amount of subsidy: activities to reduce fraud and error)[^f00006] substitute the Schedule 1A set out in Schedule 2 to this Order.

Rent rebate deductions from an authority’s subsidy

3

• (1) Schedule 4A to the 1998 Order (rent rebate limitation deductions (Housing Revenue Account Dwellings))[^f00007] is amended as follows.

• (2) In Part 2 (England), in paragraph 3 (amount of deduction), for sub-paragraph (3)[^f00008] substitute—

(3) The rebate proportion for 2016-17 is 0.752.

• (3) For Part 3 (weekly rent limits for purposes of Part 2: authorities in England)[^f00009], substitute the Part 3 set out in Schedule 3 to this Order.

• (4) For Part 5 (amounts for purposes of Part 4, paragraph 4: authorities in Wales)[^f00010], substitute the Part 5 set out in Schedule 4 to this Order.

Amendments relating to the Housing (Wales) Act 2014

4

• (1) The 1998 Order is amended as follows.

• (2) In article 17(1)(c) (subsidy in respect of non self-contained licensed accommodation etc. provided by an authority as temporary or short-term accommodation)[^f00011]—

• (a) in paragraph (i), after “Housing Act 1996” insert “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014”;

• (b) in paragraph (ii)—

• (i) for “or (in Scotland)” substitute, “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 or”;

• (ii) after “1987” insert “, as the case may be”.

• (3) In article 17A(1)(c) (subsidy in respect of self-contained licensed accommodation etc. provided by an authority as temporary or short-term accommodation)[^f00012]—

• (a) in paragraph (i), after “Housing Act 1996” insert “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014”;

• (b) in paragraph (ii)—

• (i) for “or (in Scotland)” substitute, “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 or”;

• (ii) after “1987” insert “, as the case may be”.

• (4) In article 17B(1)(c) (subsidy in respect of non self-contained licensed accommodation etc. made available by a registered housing association as temporary or short-term accommodation)[^f00013]—

• (a) in paragraph (i), after “Housing Act 1996” insert “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014”;

• (b) in paragraph (ii)—

• (i) for “or (in Scotland)” substitute, “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 or”;

• (ii) after “1987” insert “, as the case may be”.

• (5) In article 17C(1)(c) (subsidy in respect of self-contained licensed accommodation etc. made available by a registered housing association authority as temporary or short-term accommodation)[^f00014]—

• (a) in paragraph (i), after “Housing Act 1996” insert “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014”;

• (b) in paragraph (ii)—

• (i) for “or (in Scotland)” substitute, “, Part 2 of the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 or”;

• (ii) after “1987” insert “, as the case may be”.

SCHEDULE 1 — Schedule to be substituted for Schedule 1 to the 1998 Order

SCHEDULE 2 — Schedule to be substituted for Schedule 1A to the 1998 Order

SCHEDULE 3 — Part to be substituted for Part 2 of Schedule 4A to the 1998 Order

SCHEDULE 4 — Part to be substituted for Part 5 of Schedule 4A to the 1998 Order

Signed

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

Caroline Nokes — Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, — Department for Work and Pensions — 10th October 2016

We consent.

David Evennett — Guy Opperman — Two of the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty’s Treasury — 10th October 2016

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Order amends the Income-related Benefits (Subsidy to Authorities) Order 1998 (S.I. 1998/562) (“the 1998 Order”) which provides for the calculation and payment of housing benefit subsidy to local authorities in England, Wales and Scotland which administer housing benefit. Section 140F(2) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c.5) authorises the making, revocation or varying of an Order before, during or after the year to which it relates.

Article 2 (2) substitutes Schedule 1 to the 1998 Order with a new Schedule 1 prescribing the sums to be used in the calculation of subsidy for the year beginning 1st April 2015.

Article 2 (3) and Schedule 2 have effect for the purposes of determining additional amounts of subsidy payable for the year beginning with 1st April 2016. In particular, it prescribes a system for the making of additional payments of subsidy to be made in certain circumstances to local authorities who participate in the Fraud and Error Reduction Incentive Scheme (“the FERIS Scheme”), as notified by the Secretary of State to local authorities originally in November 2014 and again in February 2016.

In that scheme, participating authorities are given funding to carry out activities with a view to reducing fraud and error in relation to the payment of housing benefit. The Secretary of State then sets a threshold for expected performance in reducing fraud and error in a specified period for each such authority based on the authority’s performance in making such reductions in a previous equivalent period. Additional payments are then made to the authority, the amounts depending on the extent to which the authority exceeds the threshold for reducing housing benefit payments in each such period by virtue of those activities. The substituted Schedule 1A to the 1998 Order, which is inserted by article 2(3), sets out how the additional payments of subsidy in respect of the FERIS Scheme are to be calculated for that year. Authorities are placed in groups based on their caseload management information percentage for the relevant year beginning with 1st April 2014 and different amounts of the additional subsidy payments relate to each of those groups.

Hard copies of the circulars setting out the scheme and the amounts of the administration subsidy on which payments are based are available from the Department for Work and Pensions, Caxton House, Tothill Street, London SW1H 9NA.

Article 3 has effect for the purposes of determining subsidy payable for the year beginning with 1st April 2016. Article 3(2) amends paragraph 3 of Schedule 4A to provide that the rebate proportion figure for 2016/2017 is 0.752. Article 3(3) substitutes Part 3 of Schedule 4A to the 1998 Order in respect of weekly rent limits for authorities in England. With respect to authorities in Wales, article 3(4) substitutes Part 5 of Schedule 4A to the 1998 Order which sets out the specified amount “O” and the guideline rent increase “P” used when calculating deductions from subsidy under paragraph 4 in Part 4 of that Schedule.

Article 4 amends the provisions in the 1998 Order relating to subsidy in respect of certain temporary accommodation so as to deal with the fact that Part 2 of the [Housing (Wales) Act 2014 (anaw 7)](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/anaw/2014/7) now covers homelessness responsibilities in Wales.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as it has no impact on business or civil society organisations.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: 1992 c.5. Sections 140B and 140F were inserted by paragraph 4 of Schedule 12 to the Housing Act 1996 (c.52). Section 140B was amended by section 10 of, and paragraph 7 of Schedule 1 to, the Social Security Administration (Fraud) Act 1997 (c.47) (“the Fraud Act”). Sections 140B and 140F were repealed, to the extent they related to council tax benefit, by section 147 of, and paragraph 1 of Schedule 14 to, the Welfare Reform Act 2012 (c.5) with effect from 1st April 2013 and subject to savings and transitional provisions in articles 9 and 10 of S.I. 2013/358. Section 189(1) and (4) was amended by paragraph 109 of Schedule 7 to the Social Security Act 1998 (c.14). Section 189(1) was amended by paragraph 57(2) of Schedule 3 to the Social Security Contributions (Transfer of Functions, etc.) Act 1999 (c.2) (“the Transfer of Functions Act”) and paragraph 1 of Schedule 6 to the Tax Credits Act 2002 (c.21). Section 189(4) was amended by S.I. 2013/252. Section 189(7) was amended by paragraph 24 of Schedule 9 to the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (c.14) and paragraph 10 of Schedule 1 to the Fraud Act. Section 189 was repealed, to the extent it related to council tax benefit, by section 147 of, and paragraph 1 of Schedule 14 to, the Welfare Reform Act 2012 with effect from 1st April 2013 and subject to savings and transitional provisions in articles 9 and 10 of S.I. 2013/358.

[^f00002]: Section 189(8) was amended by paragraph 3(5) of Schedule 13 to the Housing Act 1996, paragraph 10 of Schedule 4 to the Social Security (Recovery of Benefits Act 1997 (c.27), paragraph 3 of Schedule 4 to the Tax Credits Act 2002 (c.21), paragraph 29 of Schedule 1 to the Pensions Act 2007 (c.22) and paragraph 57(3) of Schedule 3 to the Transfer of Functions Act.

[^f00003]: Section 176(1)(b) was amended by paragraph 3(4) of Schedule 13 to the Housing Act 1996 and was repealed, to the extent it related to council tax benefit, by section 147 of, and paragraph 1 of Schedule 14 to, the Welfare Reform Act 2012 with effect from 1st April 2013 and subject to savings and transitional provisions in articles 9 and 10 of S.I. 2013/358.

[^f00004]: S.I. 1998/562.

[^f00005]: Schedule 1 was substituted by S.I. 2015/1784.

[^f00006]: Schedule 1A was inserted by S.I. 2015/1784.

[^f00007]: Schedule 4A was inserted by S.I. 2004/646.

[^f00008]: In Part 2 of Schedule 4A, paragraph 3(3) was substituted by S.I. 2015/1784.

[^f00009]: Part 3 of Schedule 4A was substituted by S.I. 2015/1784.

[^f00010]: Part 5 of Schedule 4A was substituted by S.I. 2015/1784.

[^f00011]: Article 17 is substituted by S.I. 2009/2580 and amended by S.I. 2010/2509.

[^f00012]: Article 17A is inserted by S.I. 2009/2580 and amended by S.I. 2010/2509.

[^f00013]: Article 17B is inserted by S.I. 2010/2509.

[^f00014]: Article 17C is inserted by S.I. 2010/2509.

[^f00015]: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/housing-benefit-for-local authorities-circulars-2014.

[^f00016]: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/housing-benefit-for-local authorities-circulars-2016.

[^f00020]: Authorities to which Table 1 applies had the greatest caseload management information percentage and authorities to which Table 6 applies, conversely, had the least. See https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/housing-benefit-entitlement-reductions-2015-to-2016-experimental. Hard copies are available from the Department for Work and Pensions, Caxton House, Tothill Street, London SW1H 9NA.