Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007 (Sections 5, 8, 22, 23 and 28) (Commencement) Order 2007
Statutory Instruments
Source: Statutory Instruments

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paragraphs: This Order may be cited as the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007 (Sections 5, 8, 22, 23 and 28) (Commencement) Order 2007.
Commencement.
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paragraphs: (a) The 1st day of May 2007 is appointed as the day on which sections 5, 8 and 28(b) of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007 (No. 8 of 2007), come into operation.
(b) The 3rd day of May 2007 is appointed as the day on which sections 22 and 23 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007 (No. 8 of 2007), come into operation.
(c) The 7th day of June is appointed as the day on which section 28(a) of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007 (No. 8 of 2007), comes into operation.
LS
GIVEN under the Official Seal
of the Minister for Social and Family Affairs, this 27th day of April, 2007.
SÃAMUS BRENNAN
Minister for Social and Family Affairs.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)
This Order provides for the commencement of Sections 5, 8, 22, 23 and 28 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007.
Section 5 provides that where a person, who was in receipt of Illness Benefit for a period of two years, has engaged in employment for less than 26 weeks and finds that he or she is unable to continue to work, re-applies for Illness Benefit, payment will be re-instated without the requirement to serve waiting days, and payment will not be made at a lower rate than that which the person previously received.
Similarly, section 5 also contains provision for a former recipient of Illness Benefit who transfers to Carer's Benefit or Carer's Allowance and subsequently back to Illness Benefit to receive Illness Benefit at a rate not lower than that previously in payment.
This Section also provides for a technical amendment in relation to those transferring from Injury Benefit to Illness Benefit and removes an obsolete reference to the term “rules of behaviour”. This section comes into effect from 1 May, 2007.
Section 8 makes provision for a former recipient of Jobseeker's Benefit who transfers to Carer's Benefit or Carer's Allowance and subsequently back to Jobseeker's Benefit to receive Jobseeker's Benefit at a rate not lower than that previously in payment. This section comes into effect from 1 May, 2007.
Section 22 provides for an increase in the upper earnings limit for customers in receipt of the One-Parent Family Payment from 375 to 400 per week.
Section 23 provides for the introduction of a transitional reduced-rate payment to a woman whose entitlement to Deserted Wife's Benefit ceases because her earnings have exceeded the prescribed upper limit ( 20,000).
Sections 22 and 23 comes into operation on 3 May, 2007.
Section 28(a) increases from 1,200 to 1,500 the amount of the annual Respite Care Grant, with effect from 7 June, 2007.
Section 28(b) includes training and courses of education in the activities in which a recipient of Respite Care Grant may engage, subject to other criteria, without being disqualified from receiving the Respite Care Grant, and takes effect from 1 May, 2007.