Skip to main content
Work with the NEU
Government ‘unlawfully discriminated’ against two severely disabled men
Esther McVey under the spotlight for payment cuts imposed under universal credit
A judge ruled Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey had unlawfully discriminated against the two

THE GOVERNMENT unlawfully discriminated against two severely disabled men who had been moved onto Universal Credit (UC), the High Court ruled yesterday.

In the first legal test of the roll out of UC, Mr Justice Lewis ruled that Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey had unlawfully discriminated against the men, who lived alone without a carer and saw their benefits cut by around £178 a month.

TP, a terminally ill 52-year-old, had his payments cut under UC while undergoing “gruelling chemotherapy” because he briefly moved from London to live with his parents in Dorset.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
Reform UK Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick speaking on social care during a press conference at Millbank Tower, London, July 30, 2026
Politics / 16 August 2026
16 August 2026

‘Ultimately, all of Reform's policies benefit big business and attack workers and the poor,’ Diane Abbott MP tells the Star

Pension / 11 July 2026
11 July 2026

MPs back measure for 66-year-olds but it won't end suffering, groups say

universal credit
Universal credit / 25 November 2025
25 November 2025

DYLAN MURPHY reports that far from helping people back into work, the sanctions regime is inflicting unnecessary trauma on working-class families