Theresa May attacks budget cuts over fears for women



Home Secretary Theresa May has issued an extraordinary warning that the Government’s emergency budget runs a ‘real risk’ of breaking equality laws.

In a letter to the Chancellor George Osborne Mrs May warned that the Treasury was in danger of falling foul of laws which require departments to consider the impact of policies on women, pensioners, ethnic minorities and the disabled.

Writing in her capacity as equalities minister Mrs May said there were ‘real risks’ that certain groups would be ‘disproportionately affected’ by the austere package of spending cuts, tax increases and benefit cutbacks.

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The letter, written a fortnight before the emergency Budget in June, warned there was a ‘real risk of successful legal challenge’ unless the Treasury took extra steps to show it had considered the impact on disadvantaged group.

The Treasury last night said it was confident that it had met its obligations under the Equality Act 2010.

But Mrs May’s letter will be seized on by the feminist Fawcett Society which has already filed an unprecedented High Court challenge to the Budget, arguing that the Government failed in its legal duty to assess whether women would be hit unfairly by the Budget.

A coalition of ethnic minority groups is also considering a legal challenge to the Budget.

An ‘equality audit’ by the Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Yvette Cooper claimed that women would bear the brunt of more than 70 per cent of the cuts.



Second warning: An 'equality audit' by Yvette Cooper claimed that women would bear 70 per cent of the cuts

The high figure was reached because women benefit disproportionately from public services and will suffer more from cuts to tax credits and other benefits.

Ceri Goddard, chief executive of the Fawcett Society said: ‘There is a point of principle here.



'The question is – had the government followed the proper process, would parliament have voted for the budget?



'If they had known that 72 per cent of the cuts would be borne by women, would they have voted for the Budget?’

In her letter to the Chancellor Mrs May wrote: ‘I fully share the objective of spending cuts.



'Equally it is important that fairness is at the heart of those decisions so that all those most in need are protected. In this connection there are real risks that women, ethnic minorities, disabled people and older people will be disproportionately affected.

‘Women, for instance, make up a higher number of public workers and all four groups use public services more.

‘The majority of those in receipt of tax credits and welfare payments are also from these groups.

‘If there are no processes in place to show that equality issues have been taken into account in relation to particular decisions there is a real risk of successful legal challenges.’

The Treasury published an unprecedented level of detail on the impact of the Budget, including figures for how it would affect people on different income levels.



But it did not publish details on the impact on women or minority groups.

Mrs May is believed to have written to all Government departments to remind them of their duties under the equality laws as they draw up plans for spending cuts over the coming months.

A Treasury spokesman said: ‘All departments ensure that equality issues are considered when assessing options for spending reductions - they have a legal obligation to do so.’

The spokesman said the Treasury was still considering its response to the court action.