HB Bulletin U2/2019: Supreme Court judgment: DA and Others and DS and Others
Updated 23 August 2019
漏 Crown copyright 2019
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Who should read
All Housing Benefit staff
Action
For information
Summary of judgment
1. On 15 May 2019 the Supreme Court handed down judgment in the cases of DA and Others v Secretary of State and DS and Others v Secretary of State, which concern the application of the benefit cap to lone parents.
2. 皇冠体育app Court has found that the revised lower benefit cap does not discriminate against lone parents, or lone parents with children under school age, and is lawful.
3. 皇冠体育app claimants in DA challenged the lawfulness, on human rights grounds, of the application of the benefit cap to lone parents with children aged under 2. 皇冠体育app claimants in DS challenged the application of the cap to lone parents generally and lone parents with children aged under 5. 皇冠体育app Supreme Court has upheld the cap in relation to all cohorts challenged. 皇冠体育app Supreme Court鈥檚 judgments are available on its website:
Effect of the judgment
4. 皇冠体育appre will be no change to the application of the cap to lone parents, including lone parents which children under school age. 皇冠体育app judgment does not require any local authority to re-assess the Housing Benefit (HB) of existing claimants or to reinstate HB previously capped.
5. Discretionary Housing Payments remain an important option to help households adjust to the benefit cap and other welfare reforms, and awards should continue to be made in appropriate cases in the usual way having regard to, amongst other things, the published guidance.