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Iain Duncan Smith has vowed to ram through disability benefit cuts tonight despite a stark warning by his own human rights watchdog.

The top Tory vented his fury at being blocked for a second time by the House of Lords in his bid to cut Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) by £30 a week.

A letter he sent to Tory MPs yesterday, obtained by the Mirror, warned them to "strongly resist" the Lords' changes and accused peers of "an abuse of Parliamentary process" ahead of a House of Commons vote tonight.

The Work and Pensions Secretary warned blocking the cut would cost the government £1.3billion and raged: "The Commons as the elected chamber must now have the final say."

UPDATE:

The 'abuse of process' claim appears to contradict his department's own spin doctors, who said the Lords vote was a "routine part of the legislative process".

And his stubborn missive came despite the government's own human rights watchdog warning he needed more evidence about how the cuts will hit the disabled or mentally ill.

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Equality and Human Rights Commission chief executive Rebecca Hilsenrath said the DWP's impact assessment had "very little in the way of evidence" and "no attempt to break the limited data down".

In a letter to MP Roger Godsiff on February 23, she added: "It is also unclear whether applying the changes to new claimants will mean they have a more significant impact on younger disabled people or new migrant workers.

"These are the kinds of matters that we might have expected a more thorough analysis to have considered."

The top Tory wants to cut sick and disabled peoples' ESA from £102.15 to £73.10 a week - equal to jobseeker's allowance - if they are deemed fit for “work-related activity”.

But the cuts have provoked a bitter stand-off between the Tory-dominated House of Commons and the House of Lords.

Peers first rejected the cut completely in January but were blocked by Tory MPs in the Commons.

Round Two came on Monday, when a powerful speech by Paralympic idol Tanni Grey-Thompson helped prompt peers to halt the cuts until a review - delaying them until 2020.

Round Three will come next week if MPs again vote for the cuts tonight. Labour sources warned their prospects of stopping the cuts were looking bleak.

Mr Duncan Smith's letter said: "Despite financial privilege being attached to the previous Lords amendments, the Lords have effectively voted to prevent the government's proposals from taking place - proposals which will provide savings of £1.3billion up to 2020-21.

"These non-government amendments are intended to wreck the government's legislation and undermine the authority of the Commons, which has voted for this measure no less than five times.

"The government will be strongly resisting them."

The letter went on to say there are two parts to the Lords amendments.

The first delaying the reforms is a "clear attempt to block primary legislation through the back door", the letter claimed.

The second would stop the ESA cuts until Mr Duncan Smith has published a full impact assessment.

The letter said: "The majority of what is being proposed will be impossible to provide through our analysis prior to these reforms being implemented.

"This is because the currently available data does not allow us to make any meaningful estimate of such impacts.

"What it is possible for the government to provide in advance of implementation - the estimated financial effect of the reforms - has already been published in the Bill's impact assessment on 20 July 2015."

The letter listed a string of compromises, including an extra £15million for the Jobcentre Flexible Support Fund and allow ESA people to work more without losing benefits.

And it warned: "The Commons as the elected chamber must now have the final say, particularly over matters that have substantial financial implications."

(Image: Getty)

Labour MP Roger Godsiff, who was sent the human rights watchdog's warnings, said the cuts were "badly considered and spiteful".

He told the Mirror: "The Government need to stop and think rather than blindly rushing ahead with a cut which will not only cause a huge amount of suffering to a very vulnerable group, but is also likely to fail to save public funds.

"Look at the fiasco around the bedroom tax, which is currently going through the Supreme Court following a judicial review.

"It is the responsibility of the Government to provide a sound evidence base, so that legislators can make an informed decision."

A DWP spokesman said: "The current system needs reform because it fails to provide the right incentives to work, and acts to trap people on welfare. We are committed to ensuring that people have the best support possible, and that is what these changes are about.

“Current ESA claimants will continue to get the same level of support, and those with the most severe health conditions and disabilities will continue to get a higher rate of benefit.”

Ding ding! The fight so far

July 8, 2015: George Osborne uses his Budget to announce cuts of £30 a week to new or interrupted ESA claimants in the work-related activity group.

October 27: The Welfare Reform and Work Bill including the ESA cuts is passed in full by a Tory majority in the House of Commons, despite Labour MPs voting against.

It is then passed to the House of Lords, where Tories are outnumbered by Labour, Lib Dems and Independents (known as crossbenchers).

ROUND 1 - January 27, 2016: Peers in the House of Lords vote 283-198 to defeat the ESA cuts completely. The issue is passed back to the House of Commons, where the Tories have a majority.

February 23: Despite the Lords' concerns, MPs vote 306-279 to throw them out and carry on with ESA cuts anyway. Ministers apply 'financial privilege' to the cuts, meaning they must be pressed through in some form for the sake of the nation's finances, and pass the decision back to the House of Lords.

ROUND 2 - February 29: The House of Lords votes 289-219 for a lesser amendment that would halt the cuts until a full impact assessment. They are warned this will delay the cut until 2020 and cost £1billion.

March 3: MPs gather to vote on the Lords amendment. Labour MPs are whipped to back it and Tory MPs are told to fight it.

What happens next?

If the cuts are pushed through again by MPs they will return to the Lords for ROUND 3 next week. Sources warn peers' ability to use legal technicalities to hold up the Bill is now dwindling.