Attendance Allowance New Claims Test – Bristol and Glasgow Disability Benefit Centres (DBCs)

Background:

1. Following presentation to Ministers of a new vision for DLA/AA benefit delivery, work was  approved to test a new simplified claiming process.

2. A new AA claim form has been tested at Bristol DBC since March  2002. Initially, the test was confined to customer’s aged 75 and over (“Phase 1”).

3. As a result of evaluation some amendments have been made to the new claim form and testing at Bristol DBC was extended to include all customers in the AA age range (65+) with  effect from 23rd September 2002 (“Phase 2”).

4. Following evaluation of Phase 2, the test is now being extended to Glasgow DBC from 17 March 2003. The extended test will enable us to establish if the good evaluation results at Bristol DBC can be repeated elsewhere before any decisions are made on national roll-out.

Aim:

5. The aim of the project is to simplify the new claims process by tailoring it more specifically to the characteristics of the individual customer.

 6. A major part of that aim has been the development of a new claim form, tailored to obtain only appropriate evidence based on the individual characteristics of the claim. In other words, the form has been designed to encourage a more focused description of the problems experienced in each case, rather than under headings which may or may not be relevant (as in the current form). Design has been informed by extensive research and the aim is to ask questions that are relevant to most customers.

7. This form of questioning from the outset has the knock-on effect of more focused gathering of further evidence from the most appropriate source, where such evidence is considered  necessary.

 The form - main differences:Le

8. There is a single claim form to complete as opposed to the separate sections 1 and 2 under the present system. This change does not deny the customer the 6-week claiming window currently afforded where the claim form has been obtained from an appropriate office. An application to extend the time for claiming can still be made to the Secretary of State where difficulties are experienced obtaining all the information necessary to complete the form.

9. Some generic financial questions (such as information about other benefits and method of payment) have been omitted, as this information will already be held by the Department’s computer system. If a customer wishes to alter the method of payment currently held in respect of another benefit (normally Retirement Pension), this can be done if they request a change.

10. Parts 4 and 5 of the new form are designed to obtain more specific and relevant information about the nature of the disability and the level of intervention from health care professionals and carers, relatives, etc. Some additional questions are included such as identifying which part(s) of the body are affected by arthritis or rheumatism, more details about medication and more specific information about people involved in the welfare of the customer. This information will help to identify the most appropriate source of further evidence, where necessary.

11. Part 6 is the crux of the principal change. This contains “filter” questions, to help identify the key areas where help is needed. Each of the four tick boxes is based on the conditions of entitlement for each of the available levels of award. This will focus the customer on only information that is relevant to their individual circumstances. The customer is then given the opportunity to give additional evidence about the sort of help that they need under the specific headings identified by the filter questions. The customer is given some signposting as to the sort of information that is required here. This “filtering” will help the Department to manage the  customer’s expectations and where those expectations have not been fulfilled, a reasoned decision will be given.

12. There are no questions specifically relating to social activities but the opportunity to give this evidence as free text is signposted at Part 6 of the form.

 IF YOU RECEIVE ANY CLAIM FORMS TO COMPLETE, ANY LETTERS OR TELEPHONE CALLS ABOUT YOUR CLAIM DO NOTHING UNTIL YOU HAVE TAKEN ADVICE.

Carer’s Allowance and the carer premium

DWP advise that claimants may have lost out

The DWP has issued new guidance - DMG Memo Volume JSA/IS 32 - in relation to the change in the qualifying conditions for the carer premium introduced on 3 April 2000 that linked access to the premium to ICA entitlement rather than its receipt.

The memo advises that certain claimants may have lost out at the point of change since -

"Guidance ... should have been amended to explain the full effects of this change. But there is no trace of any such guidance having been issued. So some claimants have not been paid CP when they should have been awarded it as from 3.4.00."

As a result, the ICA Unit is now to take action to identify all cases affected, and decision makers are instructed to revise for official error in appropriate cases and consider compensation payments in addition to any arrears due.

 If you feel this could affect you contact DAIS on 01257 424000.

News from the Budget

The Chancellor announced in Budget 2003 that households with a person aged over 80 are to be entitled to an additional £100 annual payment.

Whilst the payment will be over and above the existing Winter Fuel Payment, consideration is being given as to whether the new payment will be paid separately or with the existing £200 lump sum.

The chancellor said in respect of reduction in benefits for people in hospital

"we have not only rejected these charges but are abolishing hospital accommodation charges, not just for pensioners, but for all who have charges imposed on them through the social security system".

People already in hospital who have had their benefits downrated will have the full rate restored from 21 May

Retirement Pension, Pension Credit, Bereavement Allowance, Widowed Parents Allowance, Widowed Mothers Allowance, Widows Pension, Widows Pension Age Related, Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Benefit, Unemployment Supplement, Industrial Death Benefit, Income Support, Minimum Income Guarantee, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.

DLA and Attendance Allowance are NOT included.

DWP Medical Assessments

The Government have confirmed that SchlumbergerSema - the private company contracted by the DWP to provide medical assessments - has had its contract extended to August 2005.

Announcing the contract extension in Parliament yesterday, Work and Pensions minister Nicholas Brown confirmed that -

"The agreement to extend the contract contains a set of quality improvement measures, including even more challenging measures relating to the quality of medical reports ... a doctor capability measure, a new complaints target ... a programme of doctor recruitment and requires them to deliver a number of other important initiatives including -

·         National implementation of the "Did Not Attend" initiative which will reduce the number of claimants who are given an appointment but fail to attend

• National implementation of "Evidence Based Medicine" which aims to secure more consistency in conducting medical examinations and to improve the quality of medical reports by using fully researched medical protocols for examination supported by an IT application
• Piloting a new approach to evidence gathering where Doctors advising on Incapacity Benefit claims will have access to relevant medical information from the claimant's General Practitioner case notes."

Housing Benefit administration worsens

A new report published by the Audit Commission - Housing Benefit: The national perspective - concludes that the Government needs to do more to ensure efficient and timely payments of Housing Benefit, and that despite a fall in the number of claimants, the service has worsened overall in the last five years.

Calling for better joint working between councils and, for example, Jobcentre Plus, the Inland Revenue and voluntary sector organisations, the Audit Commission recommends that the Government -

·         looks again at ways of simplifying the regulations, with more emphasis on ensuring that they are workable in practice and meet the needs of service users; and

·         improves the way it funds local housing benefit services (the report suggests ways of encouraging better performance, and rewarding services that meet claimants' needs faster and better).

New DWP guidance

The DWP has published new guidance in relation to a recent commissioner's decision - CIS/1544/2001 - that considered entitlement to the Severe Disabilty Premium where one of a couple is temporarily in residential care.

DMG letter 05/02 - available via the link opposite - advises that when one of a couple is in temporary residential care, the separation from their partner is also temporary and they remain members of the same household. But in such circumstances a special assessment is necessary and the claimant’s applicable amount is then the greater of -

·         the normal amount for the couple; or

·         the total of the applicable amounts assessed as if the claimant and partner were each a single claimant (or lone parent) living in their present accommodation

If you think this could apply to you contact DAIS for advice on 01257 424000.

Benefit payment by ACT

In the Commons on 27 June 2002, Work and Pensions minister Malcolm Wicks gave more information about the the government's plan to pay the majority of welfare benefits by automated credit transfer, directly into bank and building society accounts, from 2003.

"Customers will be moved from order books and girocheques to payment into a bank or building society account on a benefit by benefit basis. This will start in 2003 and we plan to finish two years later.

Reducing GP Paperwork

The Cabinet Office has published a follow-up report that suggests that "up to 3.2 million GP appointments can be freed up by removing unnecessary and cumbersome red tape."

In relation to the GPs role in the assessment of benefit entitlement, the report identifies several areas where potential savings could be made, including -

·         in relation to the assessment of incapacity and disability benefits, pilots to see if alternative methods of gathering medical evidence will be viable and sustainable

·         guidance and advice to doctors about their limited legal responsibility in relation to benefit appeals, to address concerns voiced by GPs about the referral of unsuccessful benefit applicants in order to gain support for their appeal

·         in relation to war pensions, a consultation exercise to explore how the input of GPs can be both minimised and simplified

·         in relation to the Motability Scheme, GPs only to be approached to provide advice on appropriate adaptations to a vehicle where there is no other appropriate medical professional to advise.

Outcomes from the first report that have already been introduced include -

·         from June 2001, changes to the DLA/AA claim form removing the need for GPs to sign the statement at Part 1 of the form

·         review, in June 2001, of the maternity certificates (form MATB1) completed by health professionals as part of the Sure Start Maternity Grant, and in October 2001 of the Grant claim form

·         from March 2001, guidance issued that GPs should no longer have to sign a certificate of sickness for an absence less than seven days

Outcomes from the first report that are still in development include -

·         ensuring that GPs will only be approached for DLA/AA factual reports where their input is essential and cannot be provided by anyone else

·         the revision of the DLA/AA factual report to focus on clinical facts rather than subjective opinion (on track for implementation in late 2002)

·         subject to successful pilots, the extension to nurse practitioners of the power to certify incapacity for work.

Contracting Out Local Authority HB Functions

The new Contracting Out (Functions of Local Authorities: Income-Related Benefits) Order 2002 provides that, with specified exceptions, functions* of a local authority, in relation to housing benefit, council tax benefit and discretionary housing payments may be "exercised by such persons as the authority may authorise to do so" - ie contracted out.

* exercisable under the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992, the Social Security Administration Act 1992 ("the Administration Act") section 34 of the Social Security Act 1998 and the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 2000 and Regulations and Orders made thereunder.

CHANGES TO ICA

The Government is making changes to Invalid Care Allowance (ICA). From April 2003 it will be re-named Carers Allowance. Apart from the cosmetic change to the name there is good news for carer’s over 65.

At the moment a person aged over 65 cannot claim this Allowance for the first time, even if they meet the criteria. From 28 October 2002 this changes:

There will be no age limit for claims

There will be no protection for those over 65 although those currently receiving ICA can continue to receive it

There will be an eight week run on

If you are over 65 and currently caring for someone who receives either the middle or highest rate care component of DLA or Attendance Allowance and want to know more

BEREAVEMENT BENEFIT CHANGES

At the moment, only working-age women can claim widows’ benefits.

However, the Government is bringing in a new system of bereavement benefits for widows and widowers. You should consider the new bereavement benefits as

part of your overall financial plans in the event of the death of your husband or wife.

This leaflet tells you about the changes to bereavement benefits and how they could affect you.

When will the changes happen?

We are introducing the new bereavement benefits from 9 April 2001.

The changes will not affect you if you are already getting widows’ benefits.

If you already get Widow’s Pension or Widowed Mother’s Allowance, you will carry on getting it for as long as you meet the existing entitlement conditions. If you get Widowed Mother’s Allowance, you will still be able to move onto the appropriate rate of the Widow’s Pension (if you are aged over 45) when your youngest child is aged 16, or 19 if still in full-time further education. If your husband dies before the new bereavement

benefits start, you will be able to claim the current widows’ benefits.

The new bereavement benefits

To get the new benefits, your late husband or wife must have paid National Insurance (NI) contributions. Your own NI contributions do not count. You can get the new bereavement benefits if you were legally married. You cannot get bereavement benefits if:

you are divorced from your late husband or wife;

you remarry;

you are living with someone else as husband and wife

without being legally married; or

you are in prison or being held in legal custody.

There will be three new bereavement benefits. These will replace the current widows’ benefits.

1 Bereavement Payment

We will pay you a tax-free lump sum of £2,000 as soon as you are widowed, as long as you meet the conditions. This is double the existing amount of Widow’s Payment.

You will be able to get Bereavement Payment if:

your late husband or wife met the NI contribution

conditions, or his or her death was caused by their job;

and

your husband or wife was not entitled to Retirement

Pension when he or she died, or you were under the

state pension age when your husband or wife died.

2 Widowed Parent’s Allowance

We will pay you taxable weekly benefit, worth the same as the current Widowed Mother’s Allowance, as long as you meet the conditions. (Please see the table of current

rates at the end of this leaflet as a guide.)

Widowed Parent’s Allowance includes:

a basic allowance for you;

an allowance for each of your dependent children; and

additional pension (State Earnings Related Pension or

SERPS), if you qualify.

You will be able to get Widowed Parent’s Allowance if:

your late husband or wife met the NI contribution

conditions, or his or her death was caused by their job; and

you have a child who you get (or could get) Child

Benefit for, or you are a woman expecting your late

husband’s baby.

(This includes any pregnancy as a result of artificial insemination or ‘in vitro’ fertilisation as long as you were living with your husband immediately before his death.)

If your wife has died, or dies before the start date of the new bereavement benefits, you can claim Widowed Parent’s Allowance when it is introduced, as long as you meet the entitlement conditions.

3 Bereavement Allowance

We will pay you taxable weekly benefit for 52 weeks after your husband or wife dies, as long as you are aged 45 or over, and meet the conditions. Bereavement Allowance replaces Widow’s Pension. The amount of Bereavement Allowance will be the same

as the current basic Widow’s Pension. This means that the amount you receive depends on how old you are when your husband or wife dies. (Please see the table of current rates at the end of this leaflet as a guide.)

If you are aged 55 or over when you are widowed, you will get the full rate of Bereavement Allowance.  If you are aged between 45 and 54, you will only get part of the full rate. This amount is fixed and will not increase with each birthday.

Unlike the current Widow’s Pension, we will not pay you SERPS. You will be able to get Bereavement Allowance if:

your late husband or wife met the NI contribution

conditions, or his or her death was caused by their job;

you were aged 45 or over when your husband or wife

died; and

you do not get Widowed Parent’s Allowance.

What happens when I get to pension age?

You can claim a state Retirement Pension. If you have got Bereavement Allowance or Widowed Parent’s Allowance at any time and have not remarried, you will now get any SERPS you can inherit from your late husband or wife.

If you did not qualify for the full rate of Bereavement Allowance because of your age, you will not qualify for the full rate of SERPS.

Important Information about Inherited State Earnings Related Pension (SERPS)

From 6 October 2002, a new rule will apply that may affect your entitlement to SERPS. We are introducing changes to reduce the maximum amount of SERPS that a widow or widower may inherit from their husband or wife from 100 per cent to 50 per cent.

Government proposals mean the following.

Nobody who is widowed before 6 October 2002 will be affected by the new rule.

If your husband or wife is due to reach state pension age before 6 October 2002, you will receive up to 100 per cent of their SERPS when they die.

If your husband or wife is due to reach state pension age after 5 October 2002 but before 6 October 2010, when they die you will receive a maximum of between 90 per cent and 60 per cent of their SERPS. The exact amount will depend on when, in this period, they reach state pension age.

If your husband or wife is due to reach state pension age on or after 6 October 2010, you will receive up to 50 per cent of their SERPS when they die.

Inherited State Second Pension

The Government plans to reform SERPS in 2002 so that it provides a more generous additional state pension for low and moderate earners, and certain carers and people

with a long-term illness or disability whose working lives have been interrupted or shortened. This will be called the State Second Pension. The maximum amount of State Second Pension that a surviving husband or wife can inherit will be 50 per cent.

Extra help

The new bereavement benefits will include extra help for people with children and for the oldest widows and widowers.

Widowed parents

£10 a week of your Widowed Parent’s Allowance or Widowed Mother’s Allowance will be ignored when your Income Support claim is worked out. £15 a week of your bereavement benefits will be ignored when your Housing Benefit, Council Tax Benefit and Working Families’ Tax Credit is worked out.

Older widows and widowers

If you are:

aged 55 or over when the new benefits begin; and

widowed in the five years following the introduction of the new bereavement benefits,

you will be able to claim income-related benefits without having to meet the usual jobseeking requirements. You will also get a special premium that will help you

after your Bereavement Allowance stops. The premium as of April 2000 would be worth £15.30 a week. With the normal single personal allowance (£52.20), this would bring your Income Support up to £67.50 a week (the same as the full basic rate of the

current Widow’s Pension).

Widows’ benefits - April 2000 rates

Widowed Mother’s Allowance

Basic allowance £67.50

Allowance for the first child £ 9.85

Allowance for every other child £11.35

Widow’s Pension

Age Rate

55 or over £67.50

54 £62.78

53 £58.05

52 £53.33

51 £48.60

50 £43.88

49 £39.15

48 £34.43

47 £29.70

46 £24.98

45 £20.25

The ages listed above mean either your age when your husband dies, or your age when you stop getting Widowed Mother’s Allowance. These rates change every April. You can find the latest rates in leaflet GL23 Social security benefit rates, which you can get from social security offices.

DIAGNOSIS FOR PD D1

On 25 August 1994 the Commissioner1 highlighted a divergence between the law

governing entitlement to IIDB for PD D1 and the decisions of some AMAs and MATs.

The Commissioner held that there was no minimum level of pneumoconiosis2 that a

person needs to have before diagnosis is satisfied. They either have the disease or

they do not.

The claimant was employed as a coal miner. He claimed disablement benefit for

pneumoconiosis. A Special Medical Board decided that he was not suffering from the

disease. A Medical Appeal Tribunal confirmed the decision stating that there was only

early pneumoconiosis, x-ray Category 0/1. The claimant appealed to the

Commissioner who held that the tribunal erred in law because the question before

them was not whether the claimant had certifiable coalworkers’ pneumoconiosis but

simply whether he had pneumoconiosis to whatever degree. The Commissioner also

held that diagnosis was not determined solely by a radiological category but by the

exercise of clinical judgement taking into account all the evidence.

The effect of the decision means that claims for PD D1, where the X-ray category was

0/1 or 1, may have been incorrectly disallowed on diagnosis.

The only cases that may benefit from this Commissioner’s decision are those where

an earlier claim has been disallowed on the grounds that the claimant was not

suffering from PD D1. Where the claim had been disallowed for any other reason, the

DM should supersede at the same rate. In the majority of cases the DM will simply

consider the medical reports, the category of x-ray and any other available evidence.

A category 0 x-ray is normal and means that there is no evidence of D1. The claim will

therefore have been disallowed correctly. Claims within this category will not benefit

from the Commissioner’s decision unless there is some other evidence indicating,

however slight, the presence of pneumoconiosis.

Where the examining doctor

1. determined the x-ray to be category 0/1 or 1 and

2. noted that there was some degree of pneumoconiosis and

3. decided that D1 was not diagnosed

the disallowance is likely, on the balance of probabilities, to be incorrect.

NEW METHOD FOR  DLA/AA ASSESSMENT  

The Department for Work and Pensions is currently piloting a new method of assessing entitlement to Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance - Activities for Managing Life (AML) .

In 1998, the Green Paper - New Ambitions for our country: A new contract for welfare - suggested a need to review the application process/entry point for DLA/AA. In consequence, a consultation exercise followed and the AML assessment model was drawn up. Under AML, assessment of need is based on the claimant's response to a range of descriptors, with points being allocated accordingly, for example -

·                     Being unable to eat or drink without help from another person, scores 24 points

·                     Needing help only with cutting meat and similar food items, scores 5 points

·                     An inability to walk no more than 50 metres, scores 11 points

·                     Inability to walk no more than 200 metres, scores 3 points.

Whilst the actual rates of benefit and their relationship to specific scores are yet to be decided, the DWP are aiming to deliver the same outcomes as the current system. In consequence one aim of the pilot will be to see if the scores that the AML model produces is sufficiently clearly defined to enable benefit rates to be attached to particular scores.

In addition the pilot will aim to enable the DWP to assess how easy the system is to administer and understand, and to evaluate whether the scoring system is more objective than the current method of assessment. Copies of the assessment form and the points scoring chart can be obtained from DAIS.

REDUCED EARNINGS ALLOWANCE

If you are over pension age or coming up to pension age and have had an industrial injury since at least 1990, read on … you may benefit from a loophole in the rules.

At pension age reduced earnings allowance (REA) normally stops and is replaced by retirement allowance paid at a lower rate (maximum of £11.29 a week). However, thanks to a loophole in the regulations, people can make a claim for REA after pension age and be paid normal rates.

REA regulations were amended in 1996. The effect was to remove entitlement to REA and replace it with retirement allowance for life for most people over pension age. (An exception allows a frozen rate of REA to be paid for life to those who were already getting REA and were over pension age by 9th April 1989.) However, it turns out that the legislation does not achieve the policy intention for those who do not claim REA until after pension age. Paragraph 13(1) of Schedule 7 Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 provides that a person who
‘(a) has attained pensionable age; and
(b) gives up regular employment on or after 10th April 1989; and
(c) was entitled to reduced earnings allowance (by virtue either of one award or of a number of awards) on the day immediately before he gave up such employment
shall cease to be entitled to reduced earnings allowance as from the day on which he gives up regular employment.’
If a person had already stopped work before pension age, they are treated as having given up regular employment in the week they reach pension age (60 for women, 65 for men) (regulation 3 Social Security (Industrial Injuries) (Regular Employment) Regulations 1990. 

The loophole is simply a straightforward reading of paragraph 13(1). If a person was not entitled to REA before giving up employment, ie in most cases before reaching pension age, then para 13 cannot ever apply to replace REA with retirement allowance. Furthermore there are no other regulations that restrict REA entitlement on age grounds.  There seems to be no official guidance on this point. The Decision Makers Guide implies that REA always stops on ceasing employment over pension age. However, advisers are routinely making successful claims for their clients, and sources in the DWP confirm that awards are made on this basis.  To qualify for REA, a person must have had an industrial accident or disease since before 1.10.90, have a disablement assessment of at least 1% and be unable to return to their regular occupation or work of an equivalent standard. They can qualify under either the ‘continuous condition’ (incapable of following their regular occupation or suitable employment of an equivalent standard at all times since 90 days after the accident or start of the disease) or under the ‘permanent condition’ (incapable now, and likely to remain incapable, of following their regular occupation or any suitable employment of an equivalent standard).

People over pension age who do not get REA but think they may qualify can make a claim. If entitled to REA, they should receive it at the full rate. For people nearing pension age, there is a choice to be made. They can either claim REA straightaway then have it reduced to retirement allowance at pension age. Or they can postpone claiming until just after 3 months past pension age. That way the REA claim cannot be backdated to before pension age and REA can continue to be paid indefinitely.  If you think this may apply to you, contact DAIS for further advice.

 How to contact us

The company given responsibility for managing controversial "MoT tests" on disabled people has been fined repeatedly for failing to meet performance targets, the Government admitted on 16^th December 2001. Alistair Darling, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, has given the business services company SchlumbergerSema until next summer to improve or face losing the contract to perform medical assessments on people claiming incapacity benefit.

Ministers revealed that financial penalties have been imposed on the company every month for more than two years. Managers have also been told to draw up a series of action plans to improve services at medical centres managed by the company. In November 2001, ministers awarded the company a two-year extension on its contract despite repeated complaints about shortages of doctors and poor performance.

The medical assessments are at the heart of highly contentious new rules forcing disabled people to undergo medical checks before they can claim incapacity benefits. The latest row comes after long-running concern over the medical assessment service. Last year, members of the all-party Commons Social Security Select Committee criticised Sema, which has held a contract since 1998 to perform medical assessments, and called on the Government to renegotiate the deal. Ministers insist that performance has improved since Sema was taken over by the international computer services group Schlumberger in the spring. The Department for Work and Pensions insisted that the service was improving, but Opposition MPs went on the attack.

Professor Steve Webb, the Liberal Democrats' work and pensions spokesman, called for full details of the company's contract to be made public. He said: "The failures of this contractor are widely known by those who have had the misfortune to deal with them. It is unacceptable that a new contract has been handed to them on a plate after they have been repeatedly penalised for poor performance. At a time when the Government has made it clear that the new compulsory work-focused interviews could trigger more assessments for disabled people, it is unacceptable that this company is awarded the contract to deal with an increased workload. Disabled people have put up with poor service from this company for too long. It is high time that the Government got on the side of disabled people."

Details of the financial penalties, known as "service credits", which have been imposed monthly since September 1999, were revealed by Nick Brown, the Minister for Work, in a parliamentary written answer. A spokeswoman for the Department for Work and Pensions confirmed that penalties had been imposed, but insisted that an action plan was in place to improve the service. She said a "change programme" had been put in place, including management changes and changes in staff. An assessment will be made in May next year. There must be some evidence that they have met objectives in key areas for the contract to be extended to 2005," she said. "We are working very closely with SchlumbergerSema and the company, as far as we are aware, seems to be on course."

A spokeswoman for SchlumbergerSema said that details of the penalties were commercially sensitive, but insisted that the service to patients had improved since the company won the contract. She said: "There have been lots of achievements since we took over the contract in 1998. The number of incapacity benefit examinations was up by 20 per cent between August and October compared to the same period last year. "We are committed to improving the service. As part of this we are introducing a new IT system that will produce better quality reports that are easier to understand. We are also working to increase the number of doctors working on the contract."

Proposed changes to Invalid Care Allowance

In a Parliamentary Reply the Government has indicated that it shortly intends to introduce a regulatory reform to enable claims for ICA to be extended to people aged 65 or over and to enable ICA to continue for up to eight weeks after the death of the person being cared for. No date has been announced but we will keep you informed.

TV Licence concession for the blind

Last year it was agreed that the blind would only pay 50% for a TV licence. At that time, you could only pay over the counter at a post office.

This year, you can now pay by direct debit, either yearly, quarterly or monthly as well as at the post office.

Information about the scheme is available in Braille format by ringing 08705 763 763. For more information on the concession itself ring 0845 603 6999. For enquiries about direct debit ring 08705 22 66 66. You can also visit the website at http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk or write to:

Customer Services, TV Licensing, Bristol BS98 1TL.

Please note that you cannot use direct debit for a black and white licence.

Thanks to Colin Knope for this article.

Fixed Term Incapacity Benefit Awards?

Alistair Darling has announced plans to introduce fixed term awards of Incapacity Benefit.

The proposal, which will be included in the Welfare Reform Bill expected to be law by next year, will mean that on the expiry of a fixed term award, continued entitlement to benefit will be subject to a new assessment.

We will bring you more news on these developments as they become available.

EMPs sitting as Medical Members

Tribunal of Commissioners' decision

A Tribunal of Commissioners, in CSDLA/1019/99, has recently held that, in a case where the medical member of an appeal tribunal was a doctor who regularly provided reports used by the Benefits Agency in the assessment of claims (ie. an 'Examining Medical Practitioner'), the tribunal decision constituted an error of law by reason of a breach of the principles of natural justice so far as affecting the composition of the tribunal.

Whilst the Tribunal of Commissioners held that the appellant could not invoke an Article 6 right by relying on provisions of the Human Rights Act 1998 (since the constitution of the tribunal cannot be said to have been unlawful as in breach of the appellant's Convention right without giving the 1998 Act a retrospective effect), they instead applied a test of whether an objective bystander, informed of all the circumstances, would have a reasonable apprehension of bias on the part of the medical member.

The Tribunal of Commissioners concluded that an EMP being involved in assessing reports prepared by other such doctors and then adjudicating in conflicts of evidence between such reports and other evidence causes reasonable apprehension of at least a subconscious bias. Accordingly, it would be reasonable for an informed member of the public to think that justice may not be done in such circumstances.

In addition, the Tribunal of Commissioners held that the reasonable bystander would not distinguish between the types of claims arising out of disability but rather would have the same view of involvement of a doctor in DLA and IB cases, regardless of the type of reports in which the doctor was involved and did not see any relevant distinction between the circumstances in which the 'All Work' test is administered and examinations for DLA carried out.

Volunteers & Means Tested Benefits

New amendment regulations

New regulations have been laid that provide for expenses payments to be incurred by a claimant who is engaged by a charitable or voluntary organisation or is a volunteer, to be disregarded as income for the purposes of the IS, income-based JSA, HB and CTB means tests.

NB - Regulations already provide for expenses payments that have been incurred to be disregarded.

In force from 24 September 2001

How to contact us

5 February 2001

The Children's Tax Credit - a family tax cut which will help 5 million families with children get up to £442 off tax bills - was launched on 5th February by Chancellor Gordon Brown, Social Security Secretary Alistair Darling and Paymaster General Dawn Primarolo.

A major £4.7 million national advertising campaign will encourage families to apply for the tax cut, helping them when they need it most - when children are growing up. A Helpline is available - 0845 300 1036 - for more information and help.

Gordon Brown said:

"All parents should have more support when they need it most - when children are growing up - and all, including absent parents, have a duty to fulfil their responsibilities. Our approach is firstly, to ensure the tax system acknowledges the costs of bringing up children - every family with children should have more support, improving family prosperity and reducing child poverty; second, we want to make it easier for parents to spend more time with their children by helping families balance work and home; and third, we want to ensure that all parents take seriously their responsibilities to their children, even where they are not living with them day-to-day.

With the national advertising launch of the Children's Tax Credit - our family tax cut - the tax system, which for years has ignored the very existence of children, is now recognising the very real costs of bringing up children. Building on the foundation of Child Benefit, paid to every one of 7 million mothers in the country, the new Children's tax Credit is central to the new system of financial support for families.

The maximum amount of £442 a year is on top of Child Benefit - for a family on £30,000 a year, that's the equivalent of nearly 2 pence off the basic rate of tax; for a family on average earnings of £25,000, it's the equivalent of 2.5 pence; and for a family on £15,000, it's equivalent to 5 pence off the basic rate. People should apply by the end of February to see the difference in their April pay packet.

But I want to do more to support families in the Budget, and to meet the needs of parents who wish to stay at home for longer after the birth of a child; getting people back into work with incentives such as WFTC and the 10p rate has been our priority, but now it is time to do more for mothers who want to stay at home, particularly in the first months and years of their young child's life; I am confident that we will be able to take steps to improve arrangements for families facing additional costs and pressures where there are new born children.

Our approach, now and after the next Budget - rising Child Benefit for all, the family tax cut for millions, helping parents to balance work and family responsibilities, and ensuring all parents take responsibility for their children."

Alistair Darling outlined the steps the Government has taken to ensure parents take responsibility for their children:

"Most parents are happy to meet their responsibilities, but a minority try to evade their duty, and by doing so deny children their right to a decent start in life. That is why our reform of child support is so important; over one million children will benefit when the new, simplified assessment system come into force at the CSA, getting more money, more quickly, to more children.

But we have to ensure those absent parents who evade their responsibilities do their best for their children. Our new powers, introduced this week, will ensure absent parents share in the care of their children. But in April, we will get tougher - courts will crack down on those who repeatedly avoid their responsibilities by removing driving licenses. A strong reminder that rights bring responsibilities, and a small price to pay to give children a better start in life."

The Children's Tax Credit, announced in Budget 1999, comes into force in April 2001. It's a new tax relief for families, with children, who pay income tax. It could make families up to £442 a year (£8.50 a week) better off by reducing the family tax bill. There is one Children's Tax Credit per family, and is available to married or unmarried couples and single parents with a child or children under 16. The credit is given as a reduction in the amount of income tax paid.

The new powers introduced this week by the Child Support Agency will:

make it a criminal offence to withhold information without reasonable excuse or to supply false information;

allow the CSA to presume parentage where a man is married to the mother of a child at any time between conception and birth of the child or - if unmarried - registered on the birth certificate as the father of the child;

presume a man is the father if he refuses to take a DNA test or accept a positive result;

extend powers abroad to recover child maintenance from members of the armed forces or civil servants or from those privately employed and paid via a UK payroll.

The Children's Tax Credit:

Your Questions Answered

What is the Children's Tax Credit?

It's a new Family Tax Cut which will help families when they need it most: when they have their children and when their children are growing up.

How does it work?

It's an income tax cut. It's not a payment to you, but a way of reducing the amount of tax you pay. The value is reduced if you pay tax at the higher rate.

How much is it worth?

Up to £442 a year, but the Chancellor has said that he aims to increase it to £520 a year

Who is eligible?

People who have a child aged under 16 living with them for at least part of the year, and who pay tax. The Family Tax Cut replaces the Married Couples Allowance, but it's not just for married couples - unmarried couples and single parents can also receive it.

When should I apply?

You can claim it now if you pay tax through PAYE. It's introduced on 6 April this year, and if you get your claim in by the end of February you could receive the extra in your April pay packet.

Will I have to apply each year?

As long as your circumstances don't change, you only need to apply once.

I bet I have to fill in a really difficult form.

No, it's a really simple application form.

The Revenue asks:

you, and if appropriate your partner, for your name and national insurance number

whether the child is your own child or looked after at your expense

whether the child lives with you all the time

the date of birth of the child you are claiming for

whether you are married, an unmarried couple or a lone parent

If you are a couple, you need to state:

whether you or your partner are the higher earner

whether either of you pay tax at the higher rate

Can I claim the Family Tax Cut for each child living with me?

No. You can only claim one credit per family, even if you have more than one child aged under 16 living with you.

What happens if my child has a 16th birthday during the tax year?

If your child turns 16 during the year, you can still receive the credit for the whole of that tax year.

I've heard that if you pay tax at 40 per cent, you can't apply for the Family Tax Cut.

You can earn up to around £40,000 a year and still get a tax reduction through the CTC. If either you or your partner pays tax at the higher rate, the partner with the larger income will receive the credit.

Neither my partner nor I pay tax at the higher rate. Who should apply?

The higher earner must sign the application form, but you and your partner can decide together who receives the credit, or you can split it. The lower earner only needs to sign the form if they are getting all or part of the credit.

I work for myself, so I don't have a tax code. How do I claim the Family Tax Cut?

If you're self-employed, you can claim the credit as part of your 2001/2002 tax return.What should I do if I want more information?

If you're not sure whether you're eligible or you are a PAYE taxpayer and simply need an application form, visit your local tax office or call the CTC helpline on 0845 300 1036.

DLA Mobility Component for 3-5 year olds

Claim from January 2001

Section 67 of the Welfare Reform & Pensions Act 1999 provides for reduction in the qualifying age for entitlement to the higher rate of the Mobility Component of Disability Living Allowance, from age 5 to 3.

Whilst the change is not being implemented until 9 April 2001, it is possible to make an advance claim for DLA and, as a result, Disability Benefit Centres are already gearing themselves up to deal with claims from 9 January 2001.

Indeed, during January and February 2001, the DSS are proposing to invite claims from parents/carers of those children aged between 2½ and 5 who are already getting the Care Component of DLA, and thereafter to introduce arrangements to contact those with younger children once the child reaches 2½. (The DSS does not however have any mechanism for identifying those with younger children who, whilst they could be entitled to the Mobility Component as a result of the new rules, are not in receipt of the Care Component).

nb - in addition to the scope for advance claims, the three months before the child reaches the qualifying age (or 9 April 2001, whichever is the later) can also count towards the three month waiting period allowing benefit to be paid from the earliest possible date.

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