Home Secretary Theresa May warned there is a "real risk" that deep spending cuts would break the law by discriminating against women and minority groups, it has been revealed.
Mrs May wrote to Chancellor George Osborne and other colleagues in her capacity as Equalities Minister shortly before the coalition's Government's emergency Budget in June.
The letter, leaked to the Guardian newspaper, insisted that "fairness" had to be the key principle when curbing spending.
She 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."
Mrs May spelt out the legal requirements of the Equality Act 2010, adding: "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 challenge by, for instance, recipients of public services, trades unions or other groups affected by these decisions."
Campaigning group the Fawcett Society has filed a legal challenge, arguing that the Government failed in its legal duty to assess whether spending cuts would hit women unfairly.
A coalition of ethnic minority groups is reportedly planning a separate legal challenge.
