Supreme Court to rule next week on challenge to impact of benefit cap

The Supreme Court will next week (19 November) hand down its judgment on a challenge brought by lone parents and victims of domestic violence over the impact of the Government’s benefit cap.

The appeal in R (on the application of SG and others) v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions relates to whether the Benefit Cap (Housing Benefit) Regulations 2012 are unlawful because they unjustifiably discriminate against the claimants, who are predominantly women, and fail to have regard to the best interests of the child.

The appellants in this case - lone mothers who have suffered domestic violence, and their pre-school aged children – sought to challenge the introduction of the £26,000 benefits 'cap' after it substantially reduced the weekly income of their family and put them at risk of losing their homes.

The claimants were unsuccessful at both the High Court and the Court of Appeal.

The Court of Appeal found in February that the benefit cap was discriminatory but the Department for Work & Pensions had justified this effect.

The Master of the Rolls said: “We recognise that the cap is a controversial statutory measure which will cause hardship to some (possibly many) people who are on benefit.

“It was well understood by Parliament and the Government that this would be the case. The legislation was carefully calibrated to produce a scheme which was judged by both of them to strike a fair balance between all members of society, in particular between those who are in work and those who not.”

The MR stressed that the Court of Appeal’s sole function was to rule on whether the cap was lawful. He added that the cap “plainly does have a reasonable foundation”.

A five-justice panel – comprising Lady Hale, Lord Kerr, Lord Reed, Lord Carnwath and Lord Hughes – heard the case on 29-30 April this year.