23.— (1) The Insolvency Service shall, for the purposes of sections 26, 65(4) and 99(4) and section 85D (as inserted by section 157) of the Bankruptcy Act 1988, prepare and issue guidelines as to what constitutes a reasonable standard of living and reasonable living expenses.

(2) Before issuing guidelines under subsection (1), the Insolvency Service shall consult with the Minister, the Minister for Finance, the Minister for Social Protection and such other persons or bodies as the Insolvency Service considers appropriate or as the Minister may direct.

(3) In preparing guidelines to be issued under subsection (1), the Insolvency Service shall have regard to—

(a) such measures and indicators of poverty set out in Government policy publications on poverty and social inclusion as the Insolvency Service considers appropriate,

(b) such official statistics (within the meaning of the Statistics Act 1993) and surveys relating to household income and expenditure published by the Central Statistics Office as the Insolvency Service considers appropriate,

(c) the Consumer Price Index (All Items) published by the Central Statistics Office or any equivalent index published from time to time by that Office,

(d) such other information as the Insolvency Service considers appropriate for the performance of its functions under this section,

(e) differences in the size and composition of households, and the differing needs of persons, having regard to matters such as their age, health and whether they have a physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual disability, and

(f) the need to facilitate the social inclusion of debtors and their dependants, and their active participation in economic activity in the State.

(4) Guidelines issued under subsection (1) may provide examples of—

(a) expenses that may be allowed as reasonable living expenses, and

(b) expenses that may not be allowed as reasonable living expenses.

(5) The Insolvency Service shall make guidelines issued under subsection (1) available to members of the public on its website.

(6) Subject to subsection (7), the Insolvency Service shall issue guidelines under subsection (1) at intervals of such length, not being more than one year, as it considers appropriate.

(7) Failure by the Insolvency Service to comply with subsection (6) shall not render invalid for the purposes of this Act the guidelines most recently issued by it under this section.