S.I. No. 422/2013 - Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) (Amendment) (No. 4) (Rent and Mortgage Interest Supplement) Regulations 2013.

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 8th November, 2013.

I, JOAN BURTON, Minister for Social Protection, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 4 (amended by section 96 of the Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act 2011 (No. 10 of 2011)) of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 (No. 26 of 2005), and by section 198 (amended by section 7 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2010 (No. 37 of 2010)) and Rule 2 (amended by section 17 of the Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013 (No. 20 of 2013)) of Part 4 of Schedule 3 to the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 , with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, hereby make the following Regulations:

Citation and construction.

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) (Amendment) (No. 4) (Rent and Mortgage Interest Supplement) Regulations 2013.

(2) These Regulations and the Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) Regulations 2007 to 2013 shall be construed together as one and may be cited together as the Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) Regulations 2007 to 2013.

Additional income disregard for rent and mortgage interest supplement.

2. Part 6 of the Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) Regulations 2007 ( S.I. No. 412 of 2007 ) is amended by inserting the following article after article 36:

“Additional income disregard for rent and mortgage interest supplement—prescribed employment, training etc.

36A.(1) The following employment is prescribed for the purposes of paragraph (i) of the sum represented by A in the formula set out in Rule 2 of Part 4 to Schedule 3 to the Principal Act—

(a) employment or self-employment where the number of hours worked per week is less than 30, or

(b) employment or self-employment where—

(i) the number of hours worked per week is 30 or more, and

(ii) the person has been accepted as being in need of accommodation under a scheme funded by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and known as the Rental Accommodation Scheme.

(2) The following training is prescribed for the purposes of paragraph (i) of the sum represented by A in the formula set out in Rule 2 of Part 4 to Schedule 3 to the Principal Act—

(a) a course of training provided by or on behalf of An Foras Áiseanna Saothair,

(b) a course of training provided by or on behalf of An tSeirbhís Oideachais Leanúnaigh agus Scileanna,

(c) a course of training provided by or on behalf of a vocational education committee within the meaning of section 7 of the Vocational Education Act 1930 , or

(d) a course of training provided by or on behalf of an education and training board specified in Schedule 2 to the Education and Training Boards Act 2013 .

(3) Participation or placement in the following schemes and programmes is prescribed for the purposes of paragraph (i) of the sum represented by A in the formula set out in Rule 2 of Part 4 to Schedule 3 to the Principal Act—

(a) a programme provided by or on behalf of An Foras Áiseanna Saothair and known as Youthreach,

(b) a scheme administered by the Minister and known as—

(i) Back to Work Enterprise Allowance (Self-Employed),

(ii) Back to Work Allowance (Employees),

(iii) Back to Work Short-Term Enterprise Allowance,

(iv) the Rural Social Scheme,

(v) JobBridge,

(vi) Tús, or

(vii) the Part-Time Job Incentive scheme,

(c) the work placement programme within the meaning of subsection (3) of section 142B,

(d) a scheme provided by the Minister and known as Community Employment,

(e) a programme approved of by the Minister of Education and Skills and known as—

(i) Momentum, or

(ii) Skillnets,

(f) any variation, extension or replacement of the schemes and programmes referred to in paragraphs (a) to (e), or

(g) such other scheme or programme as may be approved by the Minister, from time to time.”.

The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform consents to the foregoing Regulations.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

4 November 2013.

BRENDAN HOWLIN,

Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

5 November 2013.

JOAN BURTON,

Minister for Social Protection.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

Section 17 of the Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013 clarifies the operation of the income disregard which is used for the purposes of the Rent and Mortgage Interest Supplement schemes to ensure that this income disregard only applies to income arising from prescribed employment and training, Family Income Supplement and maintenance payments, but does not apply to any other means that the person may have, such as pensions, investment income etc.

These Regulations prescribe the types of employment and training and participation or placement in various schemes and programmes, to which this income disregard applies.