§ Helen JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the cost of restoring Jobseeker's Allowance to those employed on term-time only contracts. [147153]
§ Angela EagleEntitlement to Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) or Income Support (IS) is dependent on, among other things, a person's pattern of employment and their hours of work.
The current legal position is that those term-time workers with an ongoing contract of employment, who are not entitled to JSA or IS during term-time because of the hours they work, are also not entitled to JSA or IS during the school holidays. This position, which reflects the original intention of the legislation when JSA was introduced in 1996, was confirmed by the Court of Appeal in October 1999 following a series of contradictory decisions by Commissioners. The retrospective effect of the Court of Appeal decision means that there was never any entitlement to JSA during the school holidays for this group of ancillary or term-time workers. Leave to appeal to the House of Lords against the Court of Appeal decision was granted and we understand that the hearing has been listed for 21 March.
We have no accurate data on which to base a reliable estimate of the cost of extending entitlement to JSA or IS to all those employed on term-time only contracts. Term-time workers with low incomes may claim in-work benefits such as Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit. Those with children may also be entitled to the Working Families Tax Credit.