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The US Supreme Court has issued an urgent ruling that temporarily allows the Trump administration to delay billions in funding for food benefits relied on by countless needy U.S. residents.

Administration officials appealed to the country's highest court after a federal judge ruled that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, called food stamps, should be paid out completely to recipients by the end of the week.

The programme has been left in limbo by the ongoing federal government shutdown, with the Trump administration claiming it could only pay for part of it.

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

SNAP's Reach

This nutrition aid is used by tens of millions of U.S. citizens - around one in eight - and costs almost £6.9bn a each month.

Earlier this week, a Rhode Island judge, John McConnell, accused the Trump administration of blocking nutrition funds "due to political motives" and said that without the aid "16 million children are immediately at risk of going hungry".

The judge mandated the government to pay out the assistance in full.

Court Proceedings

This decision followed another that ordered the government to use contingency funds to at least partially fund the programme for last month.

This court battle was triggered after the US Department of Agriculture, which oversees the food stamp program, stated payments would be stopped in November due to the budget shortfall over the budget crisis.

Prior to the high court's action, the Agriculture Department said it was working to comply with the multiple rulings and was making efforts to doll out the full funds.

Supreme Court Action

High Court Judge Justice Jackson issued the order on Friday evening, called an temporary halt, effectively freezing the lower court's ruling for two days while federal attorneys pursue an appeal.

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

Wider Effects

Government workers have been unpaid for over 30 days and air travel has been thrown into chaos as Congress members fail to agree a deal to fund the government.

Several states have drawn on their own financial reserves to keep food benefits flowing, which are valued at around six dollars to recipients via electronic benefit cards which can be used in grocery stores.

However, certain states have said they are unable to replace the money which has been lost from the U.S. treasury.