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Dept for Work and Pensions

Answer

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will disregard borough councillor allowances as income for the purposes of benefit calculation. [190100] Mr. Pond: The basic councillor allowance is payable to all councillors for the time they devote to their work and to cover costs for which no other specific payment is made. For those people in receipt of income related benefits, such as income support, income based jobseeker's allowance and pension credit, which are intended to help people whose resources are insufficient to meet their day-to-day living expenses; this is treated in the same way as other types of earnings and attracts the normal £5 or £20 earnings disregard. However, expenses are fully disregarded where the expenses were incurred wholly, exclusively and necessarily in the performance of the councillor's duties. For those in receipt of incapacity benefit, which is normally paid to people who are incapacitated by the effects of their illness or disability, there is an exception for local authority councillors. Incapacity benefit is not normally payable to people who work and receive an income, however, the special provision for councillors recognises the particular obligations placed on elected councillors by disregarding such work for the purposes of deciding entitlement to benefit. Account is taken of the amount of allowance payable but benefit is affected only if the allowance exceeds the prescribed limit of £78 in any week. In this event, benefit is reduced on a pound-for-pound basis by the amount that the allowance exceeds the limit. We have no plans to change the way in which these allowances are treated.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

425 c37-8W; 190100

Session

2003-04

Subjects

Councillors Allowances Earnings rules Social security benefits

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk