AROUND one in five people hit by the ‘benefits cap’ in the region have since found work, new figures suggest.

A total of 1,336 households across the North-East and North Yorkshire have had their housing benefit cut since the controversial cap came into force almost two years ago.

Of those, only 608 households – around 45 per cent – were still affected by the cap by November last year, the most recent statistics available.

And officials believe someone in around 22 per cent of the total number if families affected is now in work, the Government’s aim for the crackdown.

They are either making a working tax credit claim, or no longer claiming housing benefit – suggesting they have found a job paying enough to no longer qualify.

Iain Duncan Smith, the Work and Pensions Secretary, hailed the benefits cap for both saving taxpayers’ money and providing “a clear incentive to people to get into work”.

He said: “The cap has led to hundreds of people breaking free from welfare dependency every week and gaining the financial security and esteem which comes with a job and pay packet.

“That’s real people turning their lives and the prospects of their families around. It is a proud record of this Government’s long-term economic plan.”

But that verdict is fiercely disputed by charities working with poor people, who warn the cap has led to families losing their homes and going hungry.

They say that two-thirds of households affected are unable to work because of sickness or disability, or because they have very young children.

Others will be receiving Jobseekers Allowance, which requires them to look for work – prompting statisticians to argue they could have found jobs without the cap.

The measure prevents workless families from claiming more than £26,000 a year in overall benefits - a level set because it is the average working family income.

The figures show the highest number of households capped since April 2013 is in County Durham (223), where 92 of them were still affected by last November.

In contrast, fewer than five families have been has been affected in Hambleton and Richmondshire, with relatively few in the rest of North Yorkshire.

The vast majority of families hit in the North-East have lost less than £50 a week, with no-one losing more than £150 a year.

Most had five or more children (810) or four children (441) – although small numbers had none (11) or only one child (eight).

The Conservatives pledged that, if they win the general election, the screw will be tightened by lowering the cap further – to £23,000 a year.

Labour has argued for the benefits cap to be set regionally, but has refused to say whether that would mean a tougher cap in the North, or less pain in the South, where rents are highest.