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America's top court has issued an urgent ruling that permits for now the federal government to withhold billions in funding for food benefits used by millions of low-income Americans.

The White House appealed to the Supreme Court after a lower court ruled that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps, should be paid out completely to beneficiaries by the end of the week.

The programme has been caught in uncertainty by the continuing budget impasse, with the government arguing it could only pay for part of it.

The court's decision means £3.04bn can be temporarily withheld pending further legal hearings.

Programme Impact

This nutrition aid is issued by tens of millions of U.S. citizens - around one in eight - and costs almost $9bn a month.

Earlier this week, a Rhode Island judge, the presiding judge, accused the government of blocking nutrition funds "for political reasons" and said that without the aid "16 million children are in danger of going hungry".

He ordered the administration to fund the programme completely.

Court Proceedings

This decision followed another that required the government to use reserve money to at least partially fund the assistance for November.

The legal saga was triggered after the USDA, which manages the food stamp program, announced payments would be stopped in November due to the budget shortfall over the shutdown.

Prior to the high court's action, the USDA said it was attempting to follow with the multiple rulings and was making efforts to distribute the full funds.

High Court's Move

High Court Judge Justice Jackson granted the stay on Friday evening, called an administrative stay, effectively freezing the lower court's ruling for 48 hours while federal attorneys pursue an appeal.

This dispute over food aid funding has become among the most contentious of what is now the longest government shutdown in US history.

Wider Effects

Government workers have been without pay for over 30 days and air travel has been thrown into chaos as Democratic and Republican lawmakers fail to agree a deal to pass a budget.

Some states have used their own budget savings to keep food benefits going, which are worth around $6 to recipients via pre-loaded debit cards which can be used in food markets.

But some states have said they are cannot cover the money which has been cut by the U.S. treasury.