EN Official Journal of the European Union C 63/29

Reference for a preliminary ruling from Upper Tribunal (United Kingdom) made on 21 December 2009 — Ralph James Bartlett, Natalio Gonzalez Ramos, Jason Michael Taylor v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

(Case C-537/09)

2010/C 63/48

Language of the case: English

Referring court

Upper Tribunal

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicants: Ralph James Bartlett, Natalio Gonzalez Ramos, Jason Michael Taylor

Defendant: Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

Questions referred

1. (a) In relation to periods to which the form of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (1) of 14 June 1971 in force immediately before 5 May 2005 applies, is the mobility component of disability living allowance under sections 71 to 76 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 capable of being categorised separately from disability living allowance as a whole as either a social security benefit within Article 4(1) of the Regulation or a special non-contributory benefit within Article 4(2a) or otherwise? (b) If the answer to (a) is yes, what is the proper category? (c) If the answer to (a) is no, what is the proper category for disability living allowance? (d) If the answer to (b) or (c) is categorisation as a social security benefit, is the benefit in question an sickness benefit within Article 4(l)(a) or an invalidity benefit within Article 4(l)(b)? (e) Are the answers to any of the above questions affected by the temporal limitation in point 2 of the Court's ruling in Commission of the European Communities v European Parliament and Council of the European Union, Case C-299/05, [2007] ECR I-8695?

2. (a) In relation to periods to which the form of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 of 14 June 1971 in force from 5 May 2005 by virtue of Council Regulation (EC) No 647/2005 (2) of 13 April 2005 applies, is the mobility component of disability living allowance under sections 71 to 76 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 capable of being categorised separately from disability living allowance as a whole as either a social security benefit within Article 4(1) of the Regulation or a special non-contributory benefit within Article 4(2a) or otherwise? (b) If the answer to (a) is yes, what is the proper category? (c) If the answer to (a) is no, what is the proper category for disability living allowance? (d) If the answer to (b) or (c) is categorisation as a social security benefit, is the benefit in question an sickness benefit within Article 4(l)(a) or an invalidity benefit within Article 4(l)(b)?

3. If the answers to the previous questions produce the outcome that mobility component is properly to be categorised as a special non-contributory benefit, is any other rule or principle of EC law relevant to the question of whether the United Kingdom is entitled to rely on any of the residence and presence conditions in regulation 2(l)(a) of the Social Security (Disability Living Allowance) Regulations 1991 in circumstances like those of the present cases?

(1) Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 of the Council of 14 June 1971 on the application of social security schemes to employed persons and their families moving within the Community

OJ L 149, p. 2

(2) Regulation (EC) No 647/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 April 2005 amending Council Regulations (EEC) No 1408/71 on the application of social security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving within the Community and (EEC) No 574/72 laying down the procedure for implementing Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71

OJ L 117, p. 1