Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2008

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Insert the following after the definition of “deciding officer”:

“ ‘designated person’ means a person designated by the Minister to perform the functions conferred on a designated person by this Act;”.

Repeal the section.

Substitute “A designated person” for “The Executive”.

(a) In subsection (3C)(b) (inserted by section 25(1)(b) of the Act of 2007), substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive”.

(b) In subsection (3D) (inserted by section 25(1)(b) of the Act of 2007)—

(i) substitute “A designated person” for “The Executive”, and

(ii) substitute “by the designated person” for “by the Executive”.

(a) In subsection (3), substitute “A designated person” for “The Executive”.

(b) In subsection (4)—

(i) substitute “a designated person may” for “the Executive may”, and

(ii) substitute “opinion of the designated person” for “opinion of the Executive”.

(c) In subsection (5), substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive”.

(a) In subsection (1)—

(i) substitute “a designated person or” for “the Executive or” where it occurs, and

(ii) substitute “by a designated person” for “by the Executive”.

(b) In subsection (2), substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive”.

(c) In subsection (3), delete “by the Executive”.

Substitute “A designated person or deciding officer may, in any case where the designated person” for “The Executive or deciding officer may, in any case where the Executive”.

(a) In subsection (1)—

(i) substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive” (first occurring), and

(ii) substitute “the designated person” for “the Executive” (second occurring).

(b) In subsection (2)—

(i) substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive” (first occurring), and

(ii) substitute “the designated person” for “the Executive” (second occurring).

Substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive”.

(a) In paragraph (a), substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive”.

(b) In paragraph (c)—

(i) substitute “designated person or” for “Executive or”, and

(ii) delete “by the Executive”.

(a) In paragraph (a), substitute “that a designated person” for “the Executive”.

(b) In paragraph (c)—

(i) substitute “the designated person or” for “the Executive or”, and

(ii) delete “by the Executive”.

(c) Substitute “the designated person” for “the Executive” (last occurring).

Repeal the sections.

Insert the following after subparagraph (iii):

“(iv) in respect of supplementary welfare allowance, so much of the allowance as the Minister considers reasonable in the circumstances”.

In subsection (4) (inserted by section 30 of the Act of 2007), substitute “a designated person” for “the Executive”.

Insert “supplementary welfare allowance,” after “pre-retirement allowance”.

Substitute the following for subsection (1):

“(1) A prosecution for a summary offence may be brought at the suit of—

(a) the Minister, or

(b) the Collector-General in any case arising out of the exercise of his or her functions under this Act.”.

Substitute the following section for section 299:

“Appointment of deciding officers and designated persons.

299.—(1) The Minister may appoint such and so many persons as he or she thinks proper to be deciding officers for the purposes of any provision or provisions of this Act, and every person so appointed shall be a deciding officer during the pleasure of the Minister.

(2) The Minister may appoint such and so many persons as he or she thinks proper to be designated persons for the purposes of the determination of the entitlement of any person to supplementary welfare allowance and the amount of any such allowance.”.

(a) In subsection (2)—

(i) substitute “Subject to subsections (3) and (3A),” for “Subject to subsection (3),”, and

(ii) substitute the following for paragraph (b):

“(b) Part 3 (social assistance), being a question other than one relating to supplementary welfare allowance (unless it relates to a category of claim specified in subsection (3A)),”.

(b) Insert the following after subsection (3):

“(3A) The following categories of claims for supplementary welfare allowance shall be decided by a deciding officer:

(a) a claim made under section 197 in any case where—

(i) a person has made an application for such benefit under Part 2 or such assistance under Part 3, as is prescribed, and

(ii) entitlement to that benefit or assistance has not yet been decided or has been decided and that decision is the subject of an appeal under section 311;

(b) a claim under section 198 for a supplement towards the amount of rent or mortgage interest payable by a person in respect of his or her residence in a case included in such categories of cases as are prescribed.”.

(a) In subsection (2), substitute “a designated person in relation” for “an employee of the Executive, including an employee of the Executive designated under section 323,”.

(b) Insert the following after subsection (2):

“(2A) A deciding officer may at any time revise any determination of a designated person, where—

(a) it appears to the deciding officer that the determination was erroneous—

(i) in the light of new evidence or of new facts which have been brought to the notice of the deciding officer since the date on which it was made, or

(ii) by reason of some mistake having been made in relation to the law or the facts, or

(b) where it appears to the deciding officer that there has been any relevant change of circumstances since the determination was made,

and the provisions of this Part as to appeals shall apply to a decision of a deciding officer under this subsection in the same manner as they apply to an original decision of a deciding officer.”.

(c) Substitute the following for subsection (4):

“(4) Subsection (2) or (2A) does not apply to a determination relating to a matter which is on appeal under section 311 unless the decision of a deciding officer under subsection (2A) or the revised decision under subsection (1), as the case may be, would be in favour of the claimant.”.

(a) In subsection (1), insert “or the determination of a designated person in relation to a claim under section 196, 197 or 198” after “deciding officer”.

(b) Substitute the following for subsection (3):

“(3) An appeals officer, when deciding a question referred under subsection (1), shall not be confined to the grounds on which the decision of the deciding officer or the determination of the designated person, as the case requires, was based, but may decide the question as if it were being decided for the first time.”.

Repeal the section.

Insert “of a designated person.” after “determination”.

Repeal the section.

Substitute the following for section 323:

“Appeals from certain determinations.

323.— Where a person is dissatisfied with the determination of a designated person of a claim by him or her under section 200, 201 or 202, an appeal lies against the determination to another person appointed or designated by the Minister.”.

Substitute the following section for section 324:

“Revision of determination of entitlement to supplementary welfare allowance.

324.—(1) A designated person (in this subsection referred to as the ‘first-named designated person’) may at any time—

(a) revise a determination of another designated person of entitlement to supplementary welfare allowance where—

(i) it appears to the first-named designated person that the determination was erroneous—

(I) in the light of new evidence or of new facts which have been brought to the notice of the first-named designated person since the date on which the determination was made, or

(II) by reason of some mistake having been made in relation to the law or the facts,

or

(ii) if it appears to the first-named designated person that there has been any relevant change of circumstances since the determination was made,

or

(b) revise the decision of an appeals officer, if it appears to the designated person that there has been any relevant change of circumstances which has come to notice since the decision was given,

and the provisions of this Part as to appeals shall apply to the revised determination or the revised decision, as the case may be, in the same manner as they apply to an original determination of a designated person.

(2) Subsection (1) shall not apply to a determination relating to a matter which is on appeal under section 311 or 323 unless the revised determination would be in favour of the claimant.”.

(a) Substitute “made by a designated person” for “given by an employee of the Executive”.

(b) In paragraphs (a), (b) and (c), substitute “the designated person” for “the employee of the Executive” where it occurs.

Substitute the following for section 328:

“Certificate by deciding officer, appeals officer or designated person.

328.— A document purporting to be—

(a) a certificate of a decision made under this Act by a deciding officer or an appeals officer, or

(b) a certificate of a determination made under this Act by a designated person,

and to be signed by him or her, is prima facie evidence of the making of the decision or determination, as the case may be, and of the terms of that decision or determination, without proof of the signature of the officer or person concerned or of his or her official capacity.”.

Substitute “a designated person” for “an employee of the Executive”.

(a) In paragraph (b), substitute “sections 303 and 311” for “sections 303, 311 and 312”.

(b) Substitute the following for paragraph (c):

“(c) a designated person, when making determinations in relation to supplementary welfare allowance.”.

(a) In subsection (2)(a), delete “(other than supplementary welfare allowance determined by the Executive)”.

(b) Delete subsection (3).

(a) Substitute “a designated person” for “an employee of the Executive”.

(b) In paragraph (b), delete “(other than supplementary welfare allowance determined by the Executive under Part 3)”.

(c) Delete paragraph (c).

(a) In paragraph (i) insert “and” after “benefit,”.

(b) Substitute the following for paragraph (ii):

“(ii) to the Minister, in the case of assistance, child benefit, early childcare supplement, family income supplement or continued payment for qualified children,”.

(c) Delete paragraph (iii).

(a) In paragraph (a), insert “and” after “benefit,”.

(b) Substitute the following for paragraph (b):

“(b) to the Minister, in the case of assistance, child benefit, early childcare supplement, family income supplement or continued payment for qualified children,”.

(c) Delete paragraph (c).

(a) In paragraph (a), insert “and” after “benefit,”.

(b) Substitute the following for paragraph (b):

“(b) to the Minister, in the case of assistance, child benefit, early childcare supplement, family income supplement or continued payment for qualified children,”.

(c) Delete paragraph (c).

(a) Delete subsection (6).

(b) In subsection (9)—

(i) delete “or the Executive” where it occurs, and

(ii) delete “(as the case may be)”.

Delete “, or in the case of supplementary welfare allowance determined by an employee of the Executive,”.

Substitute the following for the definition of “competent authority”:

“ ‘competent authority’ in relation to one-parent family payment and supplementary welfare allowance, means the Minister;”.

Repeal paragraph 4.