§ Mr. AllenTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will bring forward proposals to regulate the amount which can be claimed to pay mortgage interest payments on homes.
§ Miss WiddecombeRegulations exist to limit the amount which can be paid for mortgage interest through income support where payments are excessive. This is where:
- The accommodation is too large; or
- The accommodation is situated in an unnecessarily expensive area; or
- The outgoings are higher than those on suitable alternative accommodation in the same area.
The restriction—to the amount that the claimant would need to obtain suitable alternative accommodation—applies from the outset of the claim if the claimant could not afford the financial commitment when it was entered into, provided it is reasonable to expect the claimant and family to move. Its application my be deferred for
92WDHSS before the split of the Department in 1989. Figures for the years since 1989 are shown in the table and give the full complement of staff, including vacant posts, by grade, in the analytical services division of DSS. The figures are not strictly comparable between years because of reorganisation of the Department's analytical services.
26 weeks where the commitment was affordable and for up to a further 26 weeks if the claimant is using his best endeavours to obtain cheaper accommodation.
This regulation is, like all social security legislation, kept under careful review.