Thousands of families have benefits capped
More than 3,400 households in the West Midlands have had their benefits capped, official figures have revealed.
The controversial move means they no longer get more in benefits than the equivalent of an average household income of £34,000 before tax.
The government has claimed that across the West Midlands in more than 600 families where the benefit cap has been applied, someone has found a job, stopped claiming housing benefit or reduced their benefit claim.
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Iain Duncan Smith, said: "By capping benefits we are putting a stop to these runaway benefit claims and returning fairness to the system.
"This Government is fixing the broken welfare system we inherited, ensuring that it always pays more to be in work, and thereby encouraging thousands of people to move off benefits and into jobs."
The figures also show more than 45,847 households across the country had their benefits capped by May 2014.
The government also made £110 million to councils over two years through the Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) fund to support people who need extra help.
The benefit cap limits the amount of benefits a household can receive to £26,000 a year - equivalent to a pre-tax salary of £34,000 - or £500 a week for couples, with or without children, and lone parent households, and £350 a week for households of a single adult with no children.
But Labour has claimed the number of workers who need housing benefit to 'make ends meet' will increase if the Tories win the next General Election.
Shadow work and pensions secretary Rachel Reeves said the number of people in work but also claiming housing benefit is forecast to double from 2010/11 to 2018/19.
She said low wages and job insecurity are behind the rise.
