Brazil's top court lifts Lula with 'secret budget,' social spending rulings

FILE PHOTO: Brazil's President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a Christmas reunion with waste pickers, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, December 15, 2022. REUTERS/Carla Carniel

SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva scored two key victories on Monday, after the Supreme Court granted an injunction allowing him to increase social investment, while also outlawing an opaque congressional spending program.

In a decision late on Sunday, Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Gilmar Mendes granted an injunction that removes a 600-reais monthly allowance for poor families from the constitutional spending cap, giving a temporary green light for the payment to be extended into next year.