Update for benefit claimants waiting on court decision over possible £1,500 backdated payments from the DWP

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Hundreds of thousands of people across Scotland and the rest of the UK are waiting on a judge to rule on whether the UK Government's decision not to extend the £20 uplift to those on legacy benefits to support them during the coronavirus pandemic was fair.

Benefit claimants on Universal Credit received a £20 weekly increase from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) from April 2020 to October 2021 to help them cope with additional costs incurred during the Covid-19 crisis.

However, the uplift was not extended to those on older benefits such as Employment Support Allowance (ESA) and Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA), which campaign groups say disproportionately affected disabled people.

On November 17 and 19, 2021, the High Court heard a judicial review on behalf of four recipients of legacy benefits who contend that the failure to provide them with the £20 weekly uplift given to claimants of Universal Credit constituted “unlawful discrimination.” At the review in London, the legacy benefit claimants were represented by Jamie Burton QC, leading Desmond Rutledge of Garden Court Chambers, instructed by Osbornes Solicitors.Doughty Street Chambers issued an update recently due to the number of people making enquiries about the outcome.It said: “Judgment is awaited in the case.“It is not unusual that in a case of this type and importance for many hundreds of thousands of people that judgment takes some time.”The advisory continued: “Chambers acknowledges that many people are anxiously waiting for the outcome and are understandably contacting Jamie [Burton QC] and Chambers for an update.“Please be assured that as soon as judgment is handed down it will be communicated.