3 weeks ago
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Two mothers are challenging the authorities successful tribunal implicit the Universal Credit (UC) two-child payment policy.
That two-child headdress prevents parents from claiming UC oregon kid taxation recognition for a 3rd child.
The women, who cannot beryllium identified, had 2 oregon much children non-consensually erstwhile they were teenagers, earlier going connected to person much children consensually successful aboriginal life.
A non-consensual conception exception, sometimes referred to the rape clause, allows for further fiscal enactment to beryllium fixed to a parent of two, who past has much children arsenic a effect of rape.
However, the women accidental the exemption does not easy use to them due to the fact that their archetypal 2 children, who were calved arsenic a effect of rape, came earlier their 3rd oregon much children who were calved from consensual relations.
The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) is providing ineligible practice for the women and says the argumentation is "discriminatory and irrational".
Claire Hall, the charity's caput of strategical litigation, said: "They should beryllium capable to get the exemption for the non-consensually conceived children, irrespective of astatine what constituent they are born."
One of the women - known lone arsenic LMN - taking High Court against the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) yet received benefits for her 3rd child.
"She went for years without this support, amounting to thousands of pounds which volition not beryllium backdated" CPAG said.
The 2nd pistillate - known arsenic EFG - released a connection done CPAG : "If I had been raped aft my archetypal 2 children were born, the exceptions would beryllium applied".
CPAG says that some women person missed retired connected thousands of pounds of enactment due to the fact that of the existent policy.
A DWP spokesperson said: "We cannot remark connected ongoing ineligible cases".
The High Court situation is expected to instrumentality spot adjacent year.
The two-child headdress came into effect successful April 2017 and has been opposed by anti-poverty campaigners.
At the clip a DWP spokeswoman said: "We person ever been wide this volition beryllium delivered successful the astir effective, compassionate way, with the close exceptions and safeguards successful place."
The spokeswoman was incapable to explicate however claims would beryllium verified erstwhile made by a pistillate who had ne'er accessed enactment oregon told anyone astir being raped.
In 2023 Sir Keir Starmer told the BBC his Labour authorities would not alteration the two-child headdress and would not perpetrate other wealth to benefits without archetypal increasing the economy.
In the past campaigners brought a ineligible situation to the Supreme Court against the two-child limit, arguing that it breached parents' and children's quality rights - that lawsuit was dismissed 2021.
English (US)