Daily roundup 23 April: Benefits, domestic violence, and social media

Campaigners have lost a High Court challenge to the government's two-child limit on some benefits. The BBC reports that lawyers representing three families had argued that the policy was incompatible with human rights law. But a judge has ruled that limiting tax credits and Universal Credit to a family's first two children is lawful.


Electronically tagging domestic abusers who are subject to restraining orders would not go far enough to protect victims, campaigners have warned. The Guardian reports that the tagging proposal is part of a wide-ranging consultation on measures to be included in the government's draft domestic abuse bill launched by Theresa May last month. As part of its response to the consultation, the Victims' Rights Campaign, along with Plaid Cymru, have suggested fitting perpetrators with satellite trackers, which would alert their victims if they were nearby, as an alternative to tagging.


Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned leading social media companies that the government will impose legislation if they fail to take action to protect children and young people online. The Financial Times reports that in a letter to leading internet groups — including Facebook, Apple and Google — Mr Hunt said the UK government would consider introducing laws to control access to online platforms because there had been "an extremely limited response" to concerns he had raised. Hunt said the companies had until the end of April to outline action on cutting harmful exposure to the internet for young people.


The health of hundreds of children is being put at risk by sex-change drugs prescribed on the NHS, a doctor has warned. The Daily Mail reports that Dr Lucy Griffin, a consultant psychiatrist at Bristol Royal Infirmary, said she is "extremely worried" about the long-term effects the medication is having on adolescents. She said some patients are being given drugs to change sex after claiming they are transgender, despite having serious psychiatric conditions.