Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Social Welfare Law

Selected Works

2008

Social security

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

Widow's Pension And Gender Equality: Runkee V. United Kingdom, Mel Cousins Dec 2007

Widow's Pension And Gender Equality: Runkee V. United Kingdom, Mel Cousins

Mel Cousins

The long litigation saga involving the compatibility of UK legislation on survivors’ benefits appears to have come to a (not particularly glorious) end with the European Court of Human Rights’ (ECtHR) decision in Runkee and White v United Kingdom. This case involved a challenge to the compatibility of national law on the payment of widows’ pensions solely to women, similar to that considered by the House of Lords in Hooper and the ECtHR came to a similar conclusion holding that UK law was not incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.


The Right To Reside And Access To Social Security In The Courts Of Appeal, Mel Cousins Dec 2007

The Right To Reside And Access To Social Security In The Courts Of Appeal, Mel Cousins

Mel Cousins

This case note looks at two decisions of the English and Northern Irish Courts of Appeal in relation to the right to reside requirement for access to certain social security benefits. In brief, in the context of the expansion of the EU in 2004, the UK – unlike most other member states – allowed access to the UK labour market for the nationals of the Accession countries subject to a worker registration requirement. At the same time the UK government strengthened the existing habitual residence test by requiring that, in order to be considered habitually resident, a claimant must have …