An 82 year-old Church of England priest was due in court today after
refusing to pay his council tax as a protest against the Government's
cap on benefits.The Revd Paul Nicolson says he would rather go to jail than pay arrears of just over £1,000 as part of a campaign of civil disobedience against the benefits cap.
"Civil disobedience is morally defensible when it is used to highlight laws that are morally indefensible," said Mr Nicolson, who founded the Zaccheus 2000 Trust, a charity that helps poor families that are mired in debt.
Under the cap, which has been trialled in four London local authorities since April, including Mr Nicolson's home borough of Haringey, families cannot receive more than £500 per week in benefits, or £350 in the case of single people.
He said the cap along with the requirement that benefits claimants pay the first 20 per cent of their council tax is causing serious hardship to his neighbours in Tottenham.