Commentary on Clauses 7 to 13 Clause 8: Effect of offence on joint-claim Jobseeker's Allowance
117.This clause sets out how the fraud sanction provisions will apply to joint-claim Jobseeker's Allowance as introduced by section 59 of, and Schedule 7 to, the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999. These provisions are to be commenced on 19 March 2001.
118.Subsection (1) provides for the provisions of subsections (2) and (3) to apply where a joint-claim couple are entitled, or become entitled to joint-claim Jobseeker's Allowance and the fraud sanction is applicable to at least one of the couple.
119.Subsection (2) provides that no joint claim Jobseeker's Allowance will be payable where both members of the couple are subject to a fraud sanction, or where one member is subject to a fraud sanction and the other is already subject to a sanction pursuant to section 20A of the Jobseeker’s Act 1995, or to a community sentence sanction as detailed in subsection (2) of section 62 of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 2000.
120.Subsection (3) provides that where only one member of a couple is subject to a fraud sanction and the other member is not subject to any sanction, the amount of Jobseeker's Allowance payable will be reduced to an amount calculated in a prescribed way and will be paid to the other member of the couple who is not subject to the sanction.
121.Subsection (4) provides for hardship payments to be made in cases where both members of a joint-claim couple for Jobseeker's Allowance are subject to a fraud sanction, or where one member is subject to a fraud sanction and the other is sanctioned for employment-related reasons imposed under section 19 of the Jobseeker's Act 1995, or the restriction introduced in subsection (2) of section 62 of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 2000.
122.Subsection (5) prescribes that the reduced amount payable, referred to in subsection (3), will be calculated in the same way as prescribed in section 20A of the Jobseeker's Act 1995.
123.Subsection (6) provides that in the event if a successful appeal against either of the convictions that resulted in the imposition of a sanction, then all payments that would have been made but for the sanction are to be made as if no restriction had been imposed.