Tag: TUC

Autumn Statement ‘has done nothing to end the living standards and growth crises’

ANALYSIS by TUC’s GEOFF TILY

• The real pay crisis is intensified and now expected to last 20 years.
• The politically charged National Insurance cut makes the smallest dent in the worse squeeze on household incomes since the 1950s.
• While the Chancellor has enjoyed higher revenues, he has chosen to play austerity politics rather than back public services on the brink – £20 billion has been taken from public services to fund the meagre tax cut.
• An ‘Autumn Budget for growth’ has meant the reduced growth in almost every year of the forecast.
• ‘Full expensing’ of capital expenditure is a seriously inefficient way to boost the economy.
• In spite of all the claims to the contrary, the Tories are still presiding over worst deterioration in public finances for more than 100 years.

Real wage and household disposable income crisis unended

The forecasts published alongside the statement by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) contained alarming news on real wages. According to the OBR forecasts, real wages are now not set to return to 2008 levels until 2028. The current pay squeeze will hit two decades.

This is a significant downgrade on the March forecast, when wages were returning to 2008 levels by 2026 – two years sooner than it now expects.

graph of total average weekly earnings, including OBR forecast

The forecast for broader living standards (as measured by real household disposable income per person) remains dire. After already declining in both the 2020/21 and 2022/23 financial years, further falls are expected over the next two.

While in fact a less bad forecast than March, the OBR stress that living standards “are forecast to be 3½ per cent lower in 2024-25 than their pre-pandemic level … this … represents the largest reduction in real living standards since ONS [Office for National Statistics] records began in the 1950s”.

year-on-year change in RHDI per person

The OBR also put into perspective the 2 per cent cut in National Insurance, reckoning it will boost living standards by around 0.5 per cent at the end of the forecast. This is a minor dent in an immense collapse, and of course as everybody has pointed out only reverses in a small way tax increases at past statements – even on their own terms the government are failing.

Minimum wage

Specifically for those on the minimum wage, the Chancellor has accepted the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission (LPC). This takes the wage floor to £11.44 an hour and extends coverage to everyone aged 21+. This is badly needed and follows pressure from unions and low-pay campaigners. But with prices sky high, and the OBR increasing its inflation forecasts, the minimum wage must be raised to £15 as soon as possible, and extended to all adult workers.

The Low Pay Commission’s recommendations take the minimum wage to 66% of median wages. This is an internationally recognised measure of relative low pay. However, the Chancellor’s claims that he has eliminated low pay should be taken with a pinch of salt. This is a measure of pay distribution which looks at how close low-paid workers are to the median worker. The floor has risen since 2010 but the middle has had no real pay rise over 13 years. The bottom has been catching up, in part, because wages are stagnant for everyone else. The government should set the LPC’s next minimum wage target at 75% of median wages, and this should be delivered alongside a plan for real wage growth for all workers.

Unemployment rise

The OBR has also predicted that unemployment will steadily rise from now until midway through 2025, estimating there will be 275,000 more people in unemployment than at the start of this year. At no point in the OBR forecasts do they predict unemployment will fall below the level at the start of the year.

obr unemployment forecast

It is unfair to put it mildly to penalise individuals for an economic climate which is out of their control.  The Chancellor decided to support compulsory work placements, but analysis show this punitive policy does not result in an improved employment outcome. 

Skills

The Government plans focus largely on reforms coming in for 16-18 year olds, overlooking the skills gap faced by those already in the labour market. On apprenticeships £50m for a 2-year pilot widely misses the mark.  In 2021/22, there were approximately 349,200 apprenticeship starts in England – a 31% decline from the pre-Apprenticeship Levy figures of 509,400 starts in 2015/16 (Source: CIPD). The funds are largely directed at male-dominated sectors, according to the Women’s Budget Group. Other measures are recycled and/or small – though the increase to the pitifully low apprenticeship minimum wage is be welcomed. 

Little has been done to reverse cuts to adult and further education budgets since 2010, with spending still significantly below where it was when the government took office. Celebrating an uptick in Level 4 apprenticeships just repeats the ‘virtuous cycle’ where those with the highest levels of qualification receive the most investment in their training. Graduates get most of the training as working adults, and almost half of adults from the lowest socio-economic group receive no training at all after leaving school.

Social security

It is a low bar for this Government when they boast that benefits are being uprated in line with September’s rate of inflation, which is standard practice. Though they have severed the link between inflation and the uprating of benefits numerous times since 2010 – which has slashed vital financial support for families.

And while the Local Housing Allowance has been restored to the 30th percentile after it was last frozen in 2020, it will be frozen again and support reduced for ever-increasing rental prices.     

There were also significant cuts to benefit entitlements for some people with long term health conditions. They are expected to lose £400 a month compared to current system, and face the threat of sanctions to enter employment.

The rate at which prices are increasing may have slowed, but families are still struggling with the essentials. Over the last two years the cost of energy has increased by 49 percent while food prices have increased by 28 percent.

Energy prices

And energy bills are a glaring omission from this Autumn Statement.

Household energy bills remain 50% higher than they were in the winter of 2021-2022 (approximately £600 higher for an average household). This means that an estimated 6.3 million households are in fuel poverty (spending more than 10% of their income on energy), and more than 1 million households are in extreme fuel poverty (spending 20% or more of their income on energy). (Estimate by Friends of the Earth  and National Energy Action as government data are not yet available.)

Energy prices are expected to remain high or increase. Ofgem today raised the domestic energy price cap by 5%, based on wholesale price volatility.

Many employers will also struggle with rising and volatile energy bills. The UK consistently has some of the highest electricity prices for business in Europe, affecting the ability of UK manufacturers to compete internationally. Unions representing manufacturing workers have consistently campaigned alongside employer bodies for measures to rein in excessive and volatile wholesale energy prices – but these issues seem to be far from the list of priorities of the current Government.

Public services and public finances crises continue

As the OBR gently warn, “it is worth dwelling for a moment on something the Chancellor didn’t announce in his Autumn Statement – which is any major change to departmental spending plans despite significantly higher inflation”.

 The government has added “just” £5 billion a year in cash terms to departmental budgets, and this means that “the real spending power of these budgets is eroded by around £19 billion” relative to the previous forecast (as on their chart below).

change in real total DEL spending from 2022-2023

In 2023-24 the increased budget is allocated for public sector pay increases (£3.9 billion for the NHS in 2023-24, and £0.4 and £1.4 billion for other departments in 2023-24 and 2024-25, respectively). Overall, the OBR have departmental spending growing by 0.9 per cent a year in real terms, down from 1.1 per cent at the March Budget.  

Given the government’s political priorities on spending, the OBR stress that unprotected departmental spending is projected to fall by between 2.3 and 4.1 per cent a year in real terms from 2025-26. They wryly observe this (austerity) would “present challenges” and cite the Institute for Government’s recent report finding that “performance in eight out of nine major public services has declined since 2010”.  Plainly there is no intention to resolve the crisis in public services and public service recruitment. And ultimately

The public finances overall

For the public finances as a whole, the government has enjoyed a momentary windfall – with less bad than expected growth outturn and higher inflation meaning tax gains (especially with tax thresholds not being uprated) outweighing higher interest and other costs. This has been spent on the NI cut and expensing.

But the Chancellor has made hollow boasts about the improved condition of the public finances. The overall management of the economy for 13 years has meant a disastrous failure for them. Immediately less bad GDP outcomes (next section) have meant marginally improved ratios for this statement. But overall the Conservatives have presided over a huge increase in debt from 65 per cent of GDP in 2009-10 to 98 per cent of GDP in the current financial year. This is an unprecedented deterioration relative to all economic cycles for more than a century.

Growth crisis unended

At the end of his speech the chancellor proclaimed an “Autumn Statement for Growth”. But nothing announced yesterday changed the bottom line. While the forecasts reflected ONS revisions to GDP data and a less bad than expected 2022, growth over the next two years is revised steeply down. And on a medium term view the OBR warn:

“we have revised DOWN our estimate of the medium-term potential GROWTH rate of the economy to 1.6 per cent, from 1.8 per cent in March” (our emphasis)

The worse growth performance for the UK economy in a century just got worse again.

“Full expensing”

Of the onslaught in policy measures, the most prominent was making permanent the full expensing of business capital investment. The Chancellor chose to disregard OBR analysis showing both precursor measures (the super-deduction and temporary full expensing in the March 2021 and March 2023 Budgets) had a lower impact on investment levels than predicted (see OBR, Economic and Fiscal Outlook, November 2023, pp 33 – 34).

Introducing full expensing is forecast by the OBR to lead to an increase in business investment of £14 billion between now and 2028-29 and to cost £29.5 bn over the same period. This would appear then to be an extremely inefficient means of increasing business investment, reflecting huge ‘deadweight’ effects, whereby businesses gain generous tax relief on investment that would (likely) have taken place anyway.

The OBR estimates that the measure will raise the capital stock by 0.2 per cent by 2028-29 – a positive, but small, and very costly impact.

Pension saving

The chancellor also had high hopes for the role workers’ £2.5tn of pension savings could play in boosting our flagging economy. But while there were some welcome steps such as setting up a new growth fund through the British Business Bank the plans rely mostly on merging pension schemes in ways that are unlikely to be in the interests of their members, and leaning on funds to put more money into global private equity. These measures were also over shadowed by a poorly thought through proposal to upend the workplace pension system. See our fuller commentary here.  

Industrial strategy?

As the Chancellor noted, the lack of long-term certainty over policy decisions (including industrial strategy, taxes, and climate commitments) is a drawback to business decisions to invest. But there was no reassurance in the Autumn Statement that the Government would provide that certainty. While reannouncements of investment commitments to support the automotive, advanced manufacturing, and energy sectors – amounting to £4.5 billion are welcome, this represents only a small proportion of the investment requirements of the Biden-style industrial strategy that the UK needs.

Ending the failure  

The failure – as Labour have repeatedly identified – is still a failure of growth. The government need to invest in a stronger economy where growth and fairness go hand in hand, where decent pay means workers spend and businesses produce to meet that spending.  A virtuous cycle comes when businesses invest in the face of expansion and optimism, and stronger public services re-enforce the upward dynamic. Fairer and sustainable growth will then support the public finances.

Yet the government continues to take us in the wrong direction. Yesterday’s Autumn Statement showed more strongly than ever why it is time for a change.

Autumn Statement ‘ushers in new era of welfare reform’

A ‘bold new vision for welfare’ backed by nearly £30 billion has been set out by Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride

  • Millions of people will benefit from next generation of welfare reforms and extra support for those most in need, announced at Autumn Statement
  • Benefits increased by 6.7% and pensions by 8.5%, maintaining commitment to seeing the country through cost of living pressures
  • DWP Secretary Mel Stride heralds new era offering a “brighter future for millions”

The plans offer unprecedented employment and health support to help over a million people, while protecting those in most need from cost of living pressures – including raising pensions and benefits and increasing help with housing costs.  

Long term decisions to provide unprecedented help for people to move off welfare and into work were at the heart of the Government’s plan for growth set out at the Autumn Statement.  

While unemployment has been almost halved since 2010, the £2.5bn Back to Work plan will help thousands of people with disabilities, long-term health conditions and the long-term unemployed, to move into jobs. This comes alongside new guarantees for those on the highest tier of health benefits around keeping benefit support to cushion those who try work.  

The transformative employment programme comes as the Government continues to protect the most vulnerable, delivering a Triple Lock-protected boost for pensioners and raising benefits in line with inflation next year, worth £20bn taken together.  

The changes mean the full rate of the new State Pension will go up by £17.35 per week, while families on Universal Credit will be on average £470 better off next year. 

Around 1.6 million households will also benefit from an increase to the Local Housing Allowance – and will be around £800 a year better off on average. Worth more than £7bn over five years, this commitment will support low-income families in the private rented sector with rent costs and help prevent homelessness.  

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Mel Stride MP said: “Work changes lives. With the next generation of welfare reforms, we will help thousands of people to realise their aspirations and move off benefits into work, while continuing to support the most in need. 

“We are taking long term decisions that will build a brighter future for millions, offering unprecedented support to open up opportunity and grow the economy, building on our record that has seen almost four million more people in work since 2010. 

“Our reforms will remove the barriers to work that we know some people still face, while we’re boosting benefits and pensions to help with cost of living pressures.”

Welfare reforms announced at the Autumn Statement include:  

  • Uprating working age benefits in line with September’s CPI index figure of 6.7%.
  • Uprating state pensions in line with September’s earnings figure of 8.5%.
  • Increasing the Local Housing Allowance to cover the 30TH percentile – worth an average of £830 per year.
  • Expanded jobcentre support including intensive help for those on Universal Credit
  • Introducing the Chance to Work Guarantee, which will tear down barriers to work for millions of claimants to try work with no fear of reassessment or losing their health benefit top-ups.
  • Increasing mental health support for jobseekers by expanding NHS Talking Therapies treatment and the Individual Placement and Support programme, supporting almost 500,000 over five years.
  • Matching 100,000 people per year with existing vacancies and supporting them in that role through Universal Support.
  • Rolling out WorkWell to support people at risk of falling into long-term unemployment due to sickness or disability.
  • Reforming the Work Capability Assessment for new health benefit claimants to better reflect the opportunities available in the modern world of work.
  • Stricter sanctions for people who should be looking for work but aren’t engaging with jobcentre support.
  • Building on the Mansion House reforms with further steps to improve private pension returns and grow the economy.
  • Introducing new Government powers to request data from organisations such as banks when accounts are showing signals of fraud and error.

The Government’s ‘radical new plan’ will stem the flow people falling out of work and onto inactivity benefits due to physical or mental health problems, as it takes the long-term decisions to help people realise their dreams to find a job and build a better life. 

With this unprecedented level of employment support comes tougher enforcement of sanctions for fit and able people who should be looking for work but aren’t. 

Work coaches will use tools to track people’s attendance at jobs fairs and interviews, and close benefit claims of those able to work who have been sanctioned and no longer receiving money after six months.  

Taken together, the package will make sure those who are vulnerable or on the lowest incomes are protected, with intensive support to get them back into work, while ensuring fairness to the taxpayer.  

TORY GOVERNMENT OR TUC – WHO DO YOU BELIEVE ?

Autumn Statement: Chancellor ‘backs business and rewards workers to get Britain growing’

  • Plan for stronger economy will reward hard work, putting £450 back into the pocket of the average worker earning £35,400 a year thanks to National Insurance tax cut from 12% to 10% for 27 million working people from January.
  • Tax to be cut and simplified for 2 million of the self-employed, abolishing an entire class of NICs and cutting the rate of the NICs top rate from 9% to 8% – with an average total saving of around £350 for someone earning £28,000 a year.
  • Biggest permanent tax cut in modern British history for businesses will help them invest for less and boost investment by £20 billion per year over the next decade.
  • Triple lock maintained for pensioners, benefits to rise in line with inflation and Local Housing Allowance increased to continue supporting families with the cost-of-living.
    Government is making work pay.
  • National Living Wage rise represents boost of £1,800 to the average annual earnings of a full-time worker, and the Back to Work Plan will help over a million people start, stay, and succeed in work while ensuring tougher consequences for those choosing not to.
  • Great British pubs, breweries and distillers backed by freezing alcohol duty for six months to August 2024.
  • Public finances in a better position than in March thanks to government action, with borrowing and debt as a share of the economy down on average across the next five years.
  • Autumn Statement gets the economy growing, debt falling and helps return inflation to its 2% target – long-term decisions to build a brighter future.

Tax cuts for working people and British business headlined Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s ‘Autumn Statement for Growth’ yesterday.

Aimed at building a stronger and more resilient economy, the Chancellor set out a plan to unlock growth and productivity by boosting business investment by £20 billion a year, getting more people into work, and cutting tax for 29 million workers – the biggest tax cut on work since the 1980s.

With higher revenues resulting from stronger growth than previously projected and the pledge to halve inflation having been met, the government has stabilised the economy through taking sound decisions. As set out by the Prime Minister this week, the stronger outlook means taxes can now be cut in a serious, responsible way.

To that end, Mr Hunt announced that a 2 percentage point cut to Employee National Insurance from 12% to 10% will come into effect from January 2024.

For the average worker earning £35,400 a year, that amounts to an over £450 annual tax cut – almost immediately improving living standards for millions of people and rewarding hard-work as the government builds an economy for the future.

Taxes for the self-employed will also be cut and reformed. From April 2024, Class 4 NICs for the self-employed will be reduced from 9% to 8% and no self-employed person will have to pay Class 2 NICs, saving the average self-employed person on £28,200 a year £350 in 2024/25.

Taken together, this is a tax cut of over £9 billion per year and represents the largest ever cut to employee and self-employed National Insurance. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) says these reductions will lead to an additional 28,000 people entering work.

Cutting National Insurance will not lead to any change in NHS funding or pension payments. Services will remain unchanged and continue to be funded as they are now.

Businesses will also benefit from the biggest business tax cut in modern British history. As signalled at Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced permanent Full Expensing: Invest for Less for those investing in IT equipment, plant, and machinery.

Full Expensing: Invest for Less is an effective permanent tax cut of £11 billion a year, boosting business investment by £14 billion across the forecast period and helping to grow the economy.

With the tax cut now permanent, the UK will continue to have both the lowest headline corporation tax rate in the G7 and the most generous capital allowances in the OECD group of major advanced economies, such as the United States, Japan, South Korea and Germany.

Since the introduction of the super deduction – the predecessor to full expensing – in 2021, investment in the UK has grown the fastest in the G7.

To further ensure that work pays, Mr Hunt confirmed that the National Living Wage will increase by nearly 10% to £11.44 an hour from April 2024, the largest ever cash increase.

The Chancellor also reinforced the new £2.5 billion Back to Work Plan for those with long-term health conditions, disabilities and difficulties finding employment, which includes tough new sanctions for those who can work but choose not to.

The Chancellor also announced that the government will honour its commitment to the triple lock in full, with the state pension to increase by 8.5% in April in what is the second biggest ever cash increase. Universal Credit and other working age benefits will also be boosted by 6.7% in April, in line with September’s inflation figure as is convention.

Further action to help families includes increasing the Local Housing Allowance rate to cover the lowest 30% of rents from April – benefiting 1.6 million households with an average gain of £800 in 2024/25 – and an alcohol duty freeze to 1st August 2024, following common-sense changes of the duty system made possible by Brexit.

Measures today take the government’s total support for the cost-of-living between 2022-25 beyond the £100 billion mark, to an average of £3,700 per household.

Accompanying forecasts by the OBR confirm that today’s measures will make the economy permanently bigger, with growth every year of the forecast period. Borrowing and debt as a share of the economy are lower than in Spring this year and next year, with borrowing also lower on average across the forecast by comparison. They also confirm that inflation is expected to return to target in line with the Prime Minister’s economic priorities.

Tax

With inflation halved and debt forecast to fall, Mr Hunt delivered on the government’s commitment to cut taxes – rewarding and incentivising work as part of its long-term plan to grow the economy.

  • The main rate of Employee National Insurance will be cut by 2 percentage points from 12% to 10%, coming into effect from January 2024 – delivering the benefit of a tax cut quickly for 27 million workers.
  • The combined rate of income tax and National Insurance for employees paying the basic rate of tax will therefore fall from 32% to 30% – the lowest combined basic rate since the 1980s.
  • The rate of Class 4 NICs on all earnings between £12,570 and £50,270 will be cut by 1p, from 9% to 8% from April 2024.
  • The weekly Class 2 NICs – the flat rate compulsory charge which is currently £3.45 paid by self-employed people earning more than £12,570 – will effectively be abolished, with no-one required to pay from April 2024. Access to contributory benefits will be maintained and those currently paying voluntarily will still be able to do so at the same rate.
    The cuts to Class 4 and Class 2 together amount to a tax cut of £350 a year for the average self-employed person on £28,200, with around 2 million individuals to benefit.

Business

Measures to back British businesses big and small will remove barriers to investment and help to bridge the productivity gap between the UK and its G7 peers – unlocking £20 billion extra business investment per year over the next decade.

  • Permanent Full Expensing will create the certainty that businesses need to confidently invest for less. A company can now permanently claim 100% capital allowances on qualifying main rate plant and machinery investments, meaning that for every pound invested its taxes are cut by up to 25p.
  • A business rates support package worth £4.3 billion over the next 5 years will help high streets and protect those small businesses that are the backbones of communities. This includes a rollover of 75% Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief for 230,000 properties and a freeze to the small business multiplier, which will protect around 90% of ratepayers for a fourth consecutive year.
  • Pension reforms, including through establishing a new Growth Fund within the British Business Bank, will help unlock an extra £75 billion of financing for high-growth companies by 2030 while providing an extra £1,000 a year in retirement for the average earner saving from 18.
  • SMEs will be supported with tougher regulation on late payers to improve prompt payments, the expansion of Made Smarter in Great Britain and continued funding for Help to Grow.
  • The existing R&D Expenditure Credit and Small and Medium Enterprise Scheme will be merged from April 2024, simplifying the system and boosting innovation in the UK. 
  • The rate at which loss-making companies are taxed within the merged scheme will be reduced from 25% to 19%, and the threshold for additional support for R&D intensive loss-making SMEs will be lowered to 30%, benefiting a further 5,000 SMEs.
  • The Climate Change Agreement Scheme will be extended, giving energy intensive businesses like steel, ceramics and breweries around £300 million of tax relief every year until 2033 to encourage investment in energy efficiency and support the Net Zero transition.

Work and welfare reform

Mr Hunt set out steps to reward work, help make work pay, and reform welfare in recognition of the need to expand the workforce and get those out of work back into work to deliver growth.

The OBR expect that the measures announced at Autumn Statement will support a further 78,000 people into work by 2028-29, on top of the 110,000 resulting from action taken at Spring Budget.

  • From 1 April 2024, the National Living Wage will increase by 9.8% to £11.44 an hour for eligible workers. For the first time this will include 21- and 22-year-olds. This represents an increase of over £1,800 to the annual earnings of a full-time worker on the NLW and is expected to benefit over 2.7 million low paid workers.
  • The government will also substantially increase the National Minimum Wage rates for young people and apprentices: for people aged 18-20 by 14.8% to £8.60 an hour, for 16-17 year olds and apprentices by 21.2% to £6.40 an hour.
  • The government is reforming the Work Capability Assessment to ensure that people who can work are supported to do so via the welfare system. Changes to the activities and descriptors will better reflect the greater flexibility and reasonable adjustments now available in the world of work, preventing some individuals from being deemed not fit for work and ensuring they will be better supported into employment.
  • The boosting of four key programmes – NHS Talking Therapies, Individual Placement and Support, Restart and Universal Support – will benefit up to 1.1 million people over the next five years.
  • The government is exploring reforms of the fit note process to provide individuals whose health affects their ability to work with easy and rapid access to specialised work and health support.
  • Mandatory work placements will boost skills and employability for those who have not found a job after 18 months of intensive support. Those who choose not to engage with the work search process for six months will have their claims closed and benefits stopped.

Infrastructure and levelling up

The Chancellor unveiled a raft of supply-side measures and funding packages to benefit businesses and local communities.

  • £4.5 billion of funding for British manufacturers in the high-growth industries of the future, including £960 million earmarked for the Green Industries Growth Accelerator to support clean energy.
  • The government has published its full response to the Winser review and Connections Action Plan, which will cut grid access times for larger projects by half, halve the time to build major grid upgrades and offer up to £10,000 off electricity bills over 10 years for those living closest to new transmission infrastructure.
  • Three advanced manufacturing Investment Zones will be established in Greater Manchester, East Midlands, and West Midlands – together generating £3.4 billion of private investment and creating 65,000 high-quality jobs within the next decade.
  • The Investment Zones programme and freeport tax reliefs will be extended from 5 years to 10 years, and a new £150 million Investment Opportunity Fund will support Investment Zones and Freeports to secure specific business investment opportunities.
  • Four new devolution deals across England have been agreed. Mayoral deals with Greater Lincolnshire and Hull and East Yorkshire, and non-mayoral deals with Lancashire and Cornwall, will boost investment right across the country and deliver on the Prime Minister’s commitment to levelling-up.
  • £500 million of funding over the next two years will help establish two more Compute innovation centres, supporting the development of artificial intelligence as a growth opportunity for Britain.
  • The life sciences will also be supported as one of the Chancellor’s key-growth sectors, with £20 million to speed up the development of new dementia treatments coming as part of the government’s full response to the O’Shaughnessy Review of commercial clinical trials in the UK.
  • To prioritise those who want to invest in the UK’s future, the government has accepted in principle the headline recommendations of Lord Harrington’s review into increasing foreign direct investment. This includes additional resource for the Office for Investment, allowing it to deepen its world-class concierge offer to strategically important investors.

Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said: ““This is an Autumn Statement to support hard working families and grow our country’s economy. It is great news for Scotland.

“The National Insurance cut and increase in the National Living Wage will mean a pay boost for millions of workers right across Scotland. We have honoured the pensions triple lock, meaning pensioners will get a £900 a year increase.

“Vital new support for Scottish businesses will ensure we get growth back into our economy.

“The Chancellor confirmed more than £200 million of new, direct UK Government investment in exciting projects across Scotland, which will create jobs, boost growth and transform communities.

“Plus, there will be an additional £545 million in Barnett Consequentials for the Scottish Government, on top of their record block grant.

“There is a lot to cheer about, not least the duty freeze on spirits to support Scotland’s biggest export industry.”

Rain Newton-Smith, Chief Executive, Confederation of British Industry said: “With tough decisions to be made, the Chancellor was right to prioritise ‘game-changing’ interventions that will fire the economy.

“While the move on National Insurance will give hard-pressed households some much needed breathing room, making full capital expensing a permanent feature of the tax system can be transformational for accelerating growth and improving living standards in the long-term.

“Helping firms to unleash pent-up investment is critical to getting momentum into the economy. Making full expensing permanent will give firms the stability they need to press on with decisions on investment whilst keeping the UK at the top table internationally for investment incentives.

“Moves to speed up planning and grid connectivity should also bolster business confidence to invest in high growth areas like green technologies, renewable energy and advanced manufacturing.”

Eve Williams, General Manager, eBay UK said: “The hundreds of thousands of UK small businesses who use eBay and other online marketplaces will warmly welcome the Chancellor’s cuts in national insurance, more support for the self-employed, as well as the decision to make permanent full expensing. 

“There are enormous productivity gains to be had from encouraging the long tail of Britain’s SMEs to invest in existing digital technologies.  And given that around half of our online businesses also trade offline, they will benefit hugely from the measures on business rates for retail as well as freezing the business rate multiplier.”

Kate Nicholls, Chief Executive, UKHospitality said: “The Chancellor has brought forward a significant package of business rates measures that will help hospitality businesses across the country. UKHospitality led the calls for Government to extend relief and take action on the multiplier and I’m delighted the Chancellor has acted on our asks.

“Reforms to the planning system to drive quicker approvals will remove a significant barrier to business investment. This type of reform to reward the best performing local planning authorities is exactly the type of change we have been suggesting to drive growth in hospitality.

“We’re also pleased that the Chancellor has acted on our proposal and frozen alcohol duty until August next year to support our supply chain.

“The reduction in National Insurance for employees will put more money in people’s pockets and provide a boost to hospitality in the New Year, often a challenging time for the sector.”

Responding to the freeze in alcohol duty until 1 August 2024

Nuno Teles, Managing Director, Diageo GB said: “Today we raise a glass to the Chancellor and the Prime Minister, who have listened to the industry’s plea for support and decided to back our homegrown sector, that employs so many people across the UK.

“Drinkers and pub-goers across the country now have even more reason to celebrate this festive season. Cheers, Chancellor!”

Responding to the announcement of £7million of funding to tackle antisemitism

Mark Gardiner, Chief Executive, Community Security Trust (CST) said: “The commitment to fund education to tackle antisemitism in universities and schools, alongside the promise to continue the increase in funding for security guarding in the Jewish community, is not just a welcome, concrete contribution to the fight against antisemitism: it sends an important and powerful message to the Jewish community that we have the sympathy and support of government in this struggle.

“We are grateful for the Chancellor for this commitment and we will work with government and communal partners to ensure it is put to effective use.”

Responding to the protection of the Triple lock

Caroline Abrahams, Influencing Director, Age UK said: “We’re pleased and relieved the Government kept its promise to older people to honour the Triple Lock.  

“For the 4.2 million older people who recently cut back on food and groceries to make ends meet, having a State Pension that delivers the basics in life is essential.

“Today’s decision also crucially makes is more likely that older people will keep their homes adequately warm this winter, with less fear of facing an energy bill they simply cannot afford to pay come the spring.”

Responding to the support for Veterans

Anna Wright, Chief Executive, the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust said: “We are delighted by Chancellor of the Exchequer’s announcement of an additional £10 million to support the Veterans’ Places, People and Pathways programme.

“These projects have delivered significant work already to support our veterans, growing collaborative cross sector working and giving a more seamless interface between statutory and charity or not for profit support.

“They have great potential to help even more veterans, and further develop better, more inclusive local support and better coordination and communication that sustains into the future”

Autumn Statement offers ‘worst case scenario’ for Scotland

Deputy First Minister responds to announcements from Chancellor

The Autumn Statement delivered the ‘worst case scenario’ for Scotland’s finances and failed to live up to the challenges posed by the cost of living and climate crises, Deputy First Minister Shona Robison has said.

The statement failed to deliver the investment needed in services and infrastructure, Ms Robison said. While welcoming the increase in the statutory minimum wage, she said this did not go far enough and fell well short of the Real Living Wage of £12 an hour for 2024-25.

The Deputy First Minister said: ““Today’s Autumn Statement from the UK Government has delivered what is the worst case scenario for Scotland’s finances. Scotland needed a fair deal on investment for infrastructure, public services and pay deals – the UK Government has let Scotland down on every count.

“We needed investment in the services that people rely on and in infrastructure vital to the economy, but the Chancellor’s actions failed to live up to the challenges we are facing as a nation, while not doing enough to help those on the lowest incomes.

“The cut to National Insurance shows the UK Government has the wrong priorities at the wrong time, depriving public services of vital funding. Shockingly, the health funding announced today represents an increase of less than 0.06% to Scotland’s health budget in 2023-24 of £19.138 billion.

“The increases to the state pension and Local Housing Allowance are welcome, but the increase to the minimum wage falls well short of the Real Living Wage. Some of the measures for businesses are also positive, but they come in the face of UK growth having been projected downwards as a result of Brexit and the UK Government’s mismanagement of the economy.

“As global temperatures push ever higher, the Autumn Statement was a chance to fund efforts to cut the UK’s carbon emissions – but it did not. It’s not enough to say they support measures to encourage more renewable energy developments and expand the UK’s electricity grid need. It needs to be matched with funding to actually deliver and help us meet our net zero targets.

“We will now assess the full implications of today’s statement as we develop a Budget that meets the needs of the people of Scotland, in line with our missions of equality, community and opportunity.”

The Scottish Budget will be announced on 19 December.

TUC: Hunt’s Autumn Statement “is a plan for levelling the country down”

  • Chancellor has confirmed “another round of punishing spending cuts to public services and investment”
  • Cutting NI won’t make up for “13 continued “years of economic failure on living standards and growth”
  • Growth forecasts revised down with real wages set to remain below 2008 level until 2028
  • “The Conservatives have broken Britain. They cannot be trusted to fix it,” says TUC

Commenting on the Autumn Statement, TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “This is not a plan for rebuilding Britain. It’s a plan for levelling the country down.

“At a time when our schools and hospitals are crumbling – the Chancellor has confirmed another round of punishing and undeliverable spending cuts to public services and investment.

“Be in no doubt – if the Tories win the next election, even more austerity is on the way.

“Cutting national insurance won’t make up for 13 continued years of economic failure on wages and living standards.

“Jeremy Hunt has nothing to smile about when working people are on course for a 20-year real wage freeze.

“The Conservatives have broken Britain. They cannot be trusted to fix it.”

Responding to the 2023/24 Autumn Statement, SCVO Chief Executive Anna Fowlie, said: “I share the disappointment of other voluntary sector bodies that this week’s budget Autumn Statement did not recognise the essential services and support of voluntary organisations both in Scotland and across the UK.

“Our sector is a major employer, a partner in delivering public services, and a vital contributor to society and the economy.

“The last few years have been a period of significant change and upheaval for Scottish voluntary organisations, their staff and volunteers, and the people and communities they work with. Rising inflation and the resulting cost-of-living crisis and running costs crisis has strained sector finances and increased demand for the support and services many organisations provide, as demonstrated in our Third Sector Tracker.

“This crisis is not over. We welcome the increase in the National Living Wage which will offer some support to the lowest paid, but to meet the rising cost-of-living this needed to go further, lifting both the National Living Wage and the National Minimum Wage to at least Real Living Wage.

“Our sector is central to building a stronger economy and offers specialist support to those furthest from the labour market and should be included in these plans.

“To protect our sector’s essential contributions for the future, underfunding and a lack of inflation-based uplifts in grants and contracts needed to be addressed in this statement. As people and communities struggle through the largest reduction in household incomes since records began in the 1950s, our support will be needed more than ever.”

TUC slams “zero progress” on disability pay gap in last decade

New analysis shows pay gap between non-disabled and disabled workers is now 14.6% – higher than it was a decade ago

  • Disabled women face even bigger pay penalty of 30% – £3.73 an hour 
  • TUC says Labour’s New Deal for Working People would be a “game changer” for disabled workers, introducing mandatory disability pay gap reporting and a day one right to flexible work 

New analysis published by the TUC yesterday shows that non-disabled workers earn around a sixth (14.6%) more than disabled workers 

The analysis reveals that the pay gap for disabled workers across the board is £1.90 an hour, or £66.50 per week – over what the average household spends on their weekly food shop (£62.20). 

That makes for a pay difference of £3,460 a year for someone working a 35-hour week – and means that disabled people effectively work for free for the last 47 days of the year and stop getting paid today, on the day the TUC has branded Disability Pay Gap Day.  

“Zero progress” on disability pay gap 

The pay gap has fallen since last year, when the overall pay gap was £2.05 (17.2%) an hour. 

The new analysis shows that the disability pay gap is now higher than it was a decade ago (13.2% in 2013/14) when the first comparable pay data was recorded. 

And the gap is only slightly lower than when the TUC first launched Disability Pay Gap Day using 2016/17 data (when it was 15.0%). 

Disability pay gap by gender and age 

The new TUC analysis reveals that disabled women face the biggest pay gap. Non-disabled men are paid on average 30% (£3.73 an hour, £130.55 a week, or £6,780 a year) more than disabled women. 

The research also shows that the disability pay gap persists for workers for most of their careers. At age 25 the pay gap is £1.73 an hour hitting a high of £3.18 an hour, or £111.30 a week, for disabled workers aged 40 to 44. 

National, regional and industrial disability pay gaps 

The analysis looked at pay data from across the country and found disability pay gaps in every region and nation of the UK. 

The highest pay gaps are in Wales (21.6% or £2.53 an hour), followed by the South East (19.8% or £2.78 an hour) and the East of England (17.7% or £2.30 an hour). 

The research found that disability pay gaps also vary by industry. The biggest pay gap is in financial and industrial services, where the pay gap stands at a huge 33.2% (£5.60 an hour). 

Unemployment 

Not only are disabled workers paid less than non-disabled workers, they are also more likely to be excluded from the job market. 

Disabled workers are twice as likely as non-disabled workers to be unemployed (6.7% compared to 3.3%).  

And the analysis shows disabled BME workers face a much tougher labour market – one in 10 (10.4%) BME disabled workers are unemployed compared to nearly one in 40 (2.6%) white non-disabled workers. 

Zero-hours contracts 

The analysis shows that disabled workers are more likely than non-disabled workers to be on zero-hours contracts (4.5% to 3.4%). 

And disabled BME women are nearly three times as likely as non-disabled white men (6.0% to 2.2%) to be on these insecure contracts. 

The TUC says zero-hours contracts hand the employer total control over workers’ hours and earning power, meaning workers never know how much they will earn each week, and their income is subject to the whims of managers.  

The union body argues that this makes it hard for workers to plan their lives, look after their children and get to medical appointments. 

And it makes it harder for workers to challenge unacceptable behaviour by bosses because of concerns about whether they will be penalised by not being allocated hours in future. 

New Deal for Working People 

The TUC is calling for government action to end the discrimination disabled workers’ face in the jobs market. 

The union body says Labour’s New Deal for Working People would be a “game changer” for workers’ rights. 

Labour has pledged to deliver new rights for working people in an employment bill in its first 100 days. 

Labour’s new deal would: 

  • Introduce disability and ethnicity pay gap reporting. 
  • Strengthen flexible working rights by introducing a day one right to work flexibly. 
  • Ban zero-hours contracts to help end the scourge of insecure work. 
  • Give all workers day one rights on the job. Labour will scrap qualifying time for basic rights, such as unfair dismissal, sick pay, and parental leave.  
  • Ensure all workers get reasonable notice of any change in shifts or working time, with compensation that is proportionate to the notice given for any shifts cancelled or curtailed. 
  • Beef up enforcement by making sure the labour market enforcement bodies have the powers they need to undertake targeted and proactive enforcement work and bring civil proceedings upholding employment rights. 

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “We all deserve to be paid fairly for the work we do. But disabled people continue to be valued less in our jobs market. 

“It’s shameful there has been zero progress on the disability pay gap in the last decade. Being disabled shouldn’t mean you are given a lower wage – or left out of the jobs market altogether. 

“Too many disabled people are held back at work, not getting the reasonable adjustments they need to do their jobs. And we need to strengthen the benefits system for those who are unable to work or are out of work, so they are not left in poverty. 

“It’s time for a step change. Labour’s New Deal for Working People would be an absolute game changer for disabled workers. It would introduce mandatory disability pay gap reporting to shine a light on inequality at work. 

“Without this legislation, millions of disabled workers will be consigned to many more years of lower pay and in-work poverty.” 

The King’s Speech 2023

TUC announces special Congress to fight Conservative attack on the right to strike

My Lords and members of the House of Commons

It is mindful of the legacy of service and devotion to this country set by My beloved Mother, The late Queen, that I deliver this, the first King’s Speech in over 70 years.

The impact of Covid and the war in Ukraine have created significant long-term challenges for the United Kingdom. That is why my Government’s priority is to make the difficult but necessary long-term decisions to change this country for the better.

My Ministers’ focus is on increasing economic growth and safeguarding the health and security of the British people for generations to come. 

My Government will continue to take action to bring down inflation, to ease the cost of living for families and help businesses fund new jobs and investment.

My Ministers will support the Bank of England to return inflation to target by taking responsible decisions on spending and borrowing. These decisions will help household finances, reduce public sector debt, and safeguard the financial security of the country.

Legislation will be introduced to strengthen the United Kingdom’s energy security and reduce reliance on volatile international energy markets and hostile foreign regimes. This Bill will support the future licensing of new oil and gas fields, helping the country to transition to net zero by 2050 without adding undue burdens on households.

Alongside this, my Ministers will seek to attract record levels of investment in renewable energy sources and reform grid connections, building on the United Kingdom’s track-record of decarbonising faster than other G7 economies.

My Government will invest in Network North to deliver faster and more reliable journeys between, and within, the cities and towns of the North and Midlands, prioritising improving the journeys that people make most often.

My Ministers will strengthen education for the long term. Steps will be taken to ensure young people have the knowledge and skills to succeed, through the introduction of the Advanced British Standard that will bring technical and academic routes into a single qualification. Proposals will be implemented to reduce the number of young people studying poor quality university degrees and increase the number undertaking high quality apprenticeships. 

My Ministers will take steps to make the economy more competitive, taking advantage of freedoms afforded by the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union. A bill will be brought forward to promote trade and investment with economies in the fastest growing region in the world. My Ministers will continue to negotiate trade agreements with dynamic economies, delivering jobs and growth in the United Kingdom.

My Ministers will introduce new legal frameworks to support the safe commercial development of emerging industries, such as self-driving vehicles, introduce new competition rules for digital markets, and encourage innovation in technologies such as machine learning. Legislation will be brought forward to support the creative industries and protect public interest journalism. Proposals will be published to reform welfare and support more people into work.

My Government will promote the integrity of the Union and strengthen the social fabric of the United Kingdom.

Working with NHS England, my Government will deliver its plans to cut waiting lists and transform the long-term workforce of the National Health Service. This will include delivering on the NHS workforce plan, the first long-term plan to train the doctors and nurses the country needs, and minimum service levels to prevent strikes from undermining patient safety. 

Record levels of investment are expanding and transforming mental health services to ensure more people can access the support they need.  My Government will introduce legislation to create a smokefree generation by restricting the sale of tobacco so that children currently aged fourteen or younger can never be sold cigarettes, and restricting the sale and marketing of e-cigarettes to children.

My Ministers will bring forward a bill to reform the housing market by making it cheaper and easier for leaseholders to purchase their freehold and tackling the exploitation of millions of homeowners through punitive service charges. Renters will benefit from stronger security of tenure and better value, while landlords will benefit from reforms to provide certainty that they can regain their properties when needed.

My Government will deliver a long-term plan to regenerate towns and put local people in control of their future. Legislation will be brought forward to safeguard the future of football clubs for the benefit of communities and fans. A bill will be introduced to deal with the scourge of unlicensed pedicabs in London.

My Government is committed to tackling antisemitism and ensuring that the Holocaust is never forgotten. A bill will progress the construction of a national Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens.

My Government will act to keep communities safe from crime, anti-social behaviour, terrorism and illegal migration.

A bill will be brought forward to ensure tougher sentences for the most serious offenders and increase the confidence of victims. My Ministers will introduce legislation to empower police forces and the criminal justice system to prevent new or complex crimes, such as digital-enabled crime and child sexual abuse, including grooming.

At a time when threats to national security are changing rapidly due to new technology, my Ministers will give the security and intelligence services the powers they need and will strengthen independent judicial oversight. Legislation will be introduced to protect public premises from terrorism in light of the Manchester Arena attack.

My Government will deliver on the Illegal Migration Act passed earlier this year and on international agreements, to stop dangerous and illegal Channel crossings and ensure it is the government, not criminal gangs, who decides who comes to this country.

My Government will continue to champion security around the world, to invest in our gallant Armed Forces and to support veterans to whom so much is owed. My Ministers will work closely with international partners to support Ukraine, strengthen NATO and address the most pressing security challenges. This includes the consequences of the barbaric acts of terrorism against the people of Israel, facilitating humanitarian support into Gaza and supporting the cause of peace and stability in the Middle East.

My Government will continue to lead action on tackling climate change and biodiversity loss, support developing countries with their energy transition, and hold other countries to their environmental commitments.

The United Kingdom will continue to lead international discussions to ensure that Artificial Intelligence is developed safely.

My Government will host the Global Investment Summit, the European Political Community, and the Energy Conference, leading global conversations on the United Kingdom’s most pressing challenges.

I look forward to welcoming His Excellency the President of the Republic of Korea and Mrs. Kim Keon Hee for a State Visit later this month.

My Government will, in all respects, seek to make long-term decisions in the interests of future generations. My Ministers will address inflation and the drivers of low growth over demands for greater spending or borrowing. My Ministers will put the security of communities and the nation ahead of the rights of those who endanger it. By taking these long-term decisions, my Government will change this country and build a better future.

Members of the House of Commons.

Estimates for the public services will be laid before you.

My Lords and Member of the House of Commons.

Other measures will be laid before you.

I pray that the blessing of Almighty God may rest upon your counsels.

“Once in a generation” special Congress to take place on Saturday 9 December at Congress House

TUC announces special Congress to fight Conservative attack on the right to strike

The TUC has announced it will hold a special Congress to discuss the next stage of campaigning against the Conservatives’ anti-strike laws. 

The event will take place at Congress House on Saturday 9 December 2023, from 10am-1pm. 

The TUC says more details on the special Congress will follow in the coming weeks, including on media accreditation.  

It is rare for the TUC to seek to convene the whole trade union movement at a special Congress outside of the TUC’s usual flagship annual event in September. 

A special Congress last took place over 40 years ago in 1982, to fight Margaret Thatcher’s anti-union legislation. 

The TUC points to exceptional circumstances given the “unprecedented attack on the right to strike”.  

New regulations 

The announcement comes after the government laid regulations for minimum service levels in rail, the ambulance service and border security.  

Ministers have said these new rules will be rushed into force by the end of the year. Ministers are also consulting on rules affecting workers in hospital settings, schools, universities and fire services.  

This is despite warnings from unions and employer groups that the plans are unworkable. 

The laws will mean that when workers lawfully vote to strike, they could be forced to attend work – and sacked if they don’t comply.  

TUC research found a massive 1 in 5 workers in Britain – or 5.5 million workers – are at risk of losing their right to strike as a result of the Strikes (Minimum service levels) Act. 

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “After 13 long years of Conservative government, nothing works in this country anymore.  

“But instead of getting on with fixing the mess they have created, the Conservatives are hellbent on making things worse. 

“These new laws represent an unprecedented attack on the right to strike. They are unworkable, undemocratic and almost certainly in breach of international law.   

“This is the last thing our crumbling public services or our dedicated frontline workers need – these draconian laws will poison industrial relations and drag out disputes. 

“The UK already has some of the most restrictive trade union laws in Europe. Now the Tories want to make it even harder for people to win fair pay and conditions. 

“That’s why we are calling this once in a generation special Congress.  

“Unions will keep fighting this spiteful legislation. We won’t stop until it is repealed.” 

Strike laws to be passed ‘to protect vital public services over Christmas’

  • Minimum Service Levels legislation will be passed for rail, ambulance, and border security staff to mitigate disruption if strikes called.
  • Delivers on manifesto commitment to introduce minimum service levels for rail strikes.
  • Comes ahead of further consultations to introduce minimum service levels for education, other NHS staff, and fire services.

Minimum service level regulations for rail workers, ambulance staff and border security staff will be laid in parliament to mitigate disruption and ensure vital public services continue if strikes are called, the UK government announced yesterday (Monday 6 November). 

The legislation brings us in line with countries like France, Italy, Spain, and the US where public services reliably continue during strikes. The International Labour Organisation also recognises Minimum Service Levels as a sensible solution to protect the public from serious consequences of strikes.  

The minimum service levels are designed to be effective and proportionate by balancing the ability to take strike action with ensuring we can keep our borders secure, supporting people to make important journeys including accessing work, education, and healthcare, and allowing people to get the emergency care they need.

Earlier this year, the government consulted widely on proposals to introduce minimum service levels legislation across a range of sectors, under the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act which received Royal Assent in July. The responses to these consultations have been published today with the legislation set to be laid in parliament tomorrow.

For border security, the regulations will apply to employees of Border Force and selected HM Passport Office staff where passport services are required for the purposes of national security. The laws will set out that border security services should be provided at a level that means that they are no less effective than if a strike were not taking place. It will also ensure all ports and airports remain open on a strike.  

For train operators, it will mean the equivalent of 40% of their normal timetable can operate as normal and, in the case of strikes that affect rail infrastructure services, certain priority routes can remain open.

Minimum service level regulations for ambulance workers will ensure that vital ambulance services in England will continue throughout any strike action, ensuring that cases that are life-threatening, or where there is no reasonable clinical alternative to an ambulance response, are responded to.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “We are doing everything in our power to stop unions de-railing Christmas for millions of people. This legislation will ensure more people will be able to travel to see their friends and family and get the emergency care they need.

“We cannot go on relying on short term fixes – including calling on our Armed Forces or civil servants – to mitigate the disruption caused by strike action. 

“That’s why we’re taking the right long-term decision to bring in minimum service levels, in line with other countries, to keep people safe and continue delivering the vital public services that hard-working people rely on.”

Where minimum service level regulations are in place and strike action is called, employers can issue work notices to identify people who are reasonably required to work to ensure minimum service levels are met. 

The law requires unions to take reasonable steps and ensure their members who are identified with a work notice comply and if a union fails to do this, they will lose their legal protection from damages claims. 

Last year, Westminster raised the maximum damages that courts can award against a union for unlawful strike action. For the biggest unions, the maximum award has risen from £250,000 to £1 million.

Transport Secretary, Mark Harper said: “For too long, hard working people have been unfairly targeted by rail union leaders – prevented from making important journeys, including getting to work, school or vital hospital appointments.

“Minimum Service Levels will help address this by allowing the rail industry to plan ahead to reduce disruption for passengers while ensuring workers can still exercise their ability to strike. 

“An improved service on strike days will allow passengers to continue with their day-to-day lives and support businesses, particularly in the hospitality sector.”

Earlier this year, the UK government accepted the independent pay review bodies recommendations in full, providing a fair pay deal for all public sector workers. 

An agreement between the government and Agenda for Change unions earlier this year saw over one million NHS staff receive a 5% pay rise along with one-off awards worth over £3,000 for the typical nurse or ambulance worker.

For rail workers, there remains a fair and reasonable offer on the table which several unions have already accepted, one which would deliver competitive pay rises of 5% + 4% pay increase over two years.

Home Office staff in delegated grades including Border Force staff have been provided with a pay award averaging 4.5% with an additional 0.5% targeted at the lower grades.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said: “We must never allow strike action to compromise our border security or cause significant disruption to passengers and goods at our borders.

“The Armed Forces have commendably stepped up to fill vital roles during recent industrial action, but it would be irresponsible to rely on such short-term solutions to protect our national security.

“The minimum service levels announced today will ensure a fair balance between delivering the best possible service to the travelling public, maintaining a secure border and the ability of workers to strike.”

The government continues to recognise the crucial role of NHS staff and remains committed to working constructively to end any disruption for patients, and there are currently no live strike mandates relating to ambulance trusts. However, strikes have already had a significant impact on patients, NHS staff and efforts to cut waiting lists – including over one million postponed appointments and procedures.

The Department of Health and Social Care is currently seeking evidence on expanding the scope of minimum service levels to cover other urgent and emergency hospital-based services which could include nurses and doctors. The consultation is set to close on the 14th of November.

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said: “Patients must be protected and strikes in ambulance services could put the lives and health of the public at risk, given their essential role in responding to life threatening emergencies.

“While voluntary agreements between employers and trade unions can still be agreed ahead of industrial action, these regulations provide a safety net for trusts and an assurance to the public that vital emergency services will be there when they need them. 

“We will continue to take steps to protect patient safety and ensure health services have the staff they need to operate safely and effectively, no matter the circumstances.”

The Education Secretary has committed to introduce minimum service levels on a voluntary basis should an agreement be reached with the education unions. If a voluntary arrangement cannot be agreed, a consultation will be launched on introducing minimum service levels in schools and colleges.

Separately, the Department has also committed to launching a consultation on introducing minimum service levels in universities.

The Department for Business and Trade recently consulted on a new draft statutory Code of Practice on the ‘reasonable steps’ a trade union should take to meet the requirements set out in the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023.

They will also launch a consultation on removing regulation 7 across all sectors which prevents employment businesses supplying agency workers to cover the duties normally performed by a worker who is taking part in an official strike or other industrial action. These will be published in due course.

TUC slams government for “unworkable” and “irrational” anti-strike laws

  • Ministers to lay regulations today for minimum service levels in rail, the ambulance service and border security
  • Conservatives also looking to overturn ban on use of agency workers during strikes – despite “humiliating” defeat at the High Court in June
  • TUC accuses government of punishing workers “for daring to stand up for decent pay and better services.”  
  • Union body says new laws are almost certainly in breach of international law

The TUC has slammed the government for trying to railroad through “unworkable” and “irrational” anti-strike laws.

Government ministers yesterday laid regulations for so-called ‘minimum service levels’ in rail, the ambulance service and border security. Ministers have said they will be rushed into force by the end of the year.

This comes despite warnings from unions and employer groups that the plans are unworkable.

The laws will mean that when workers lawfully vote to strike they could be forced to attend work – and sacked if they don’t comply.

TUC research found a massive 1 in 5 workers in Britain – or 5.5 million workers – are at risk of losing their right to strike as a result of the Strikes (Minimum service levels) Act.

Agency worker rules

In addition, ministers will try again to overturn the ban on the use of agency workers during strikes.

In June the government was defeated in the High Court after it rushed through new laws that allowed agencies to supply employers with workers to fill in for those on strike.

The presiding judge scolded ministers for acting in a way that was “unfair, unlawful and irrational” and reinstated the ban on agency staff being used to break strikes.

But despite this rebuke – and strong opposition from unions and employers – ministers are resurrecting the plans with a new consultation.

Commenting on the extension of minimum service levels to rail, the ambulance services and border security, Paul Nowak said: “These anti-strike laws won’t work. The crisis in our public services is of the government’s own making.

“Rather than engaging constructively with unions, they are attacking the right to strike. And they are punishing paramedics and rail staff for daring to stand up for decent pay and better services.

“These new laws are unworkable, undemocratic and almost certainly in breach of international law.  

“The UK already has some of the most restrictive trade union laws in Europe.

“It is already harder for working people here to take strike action than in any other Western European country. Now the Tories want to make it even harder for people to win fair pay and conditions.

“Unions will keep fighting this spiteful legislation. We won’t stop until it is repealed.”

In September the TUC reported the government to the International Labour Organization (ILO) – the UN workers’ rights watchdog – over the Strikes Act.

Commenting on the announcement on agency workers, TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “Allowing unscrupulous employers to bring in agency staff to deliver important services risks endangering public safety and escalating disputes.

“Agency recruitment bodies have repeatedly made clear they don’t want their staff to be used as political pawns during strikes. But ministers are not listening.

“Despite suffering a humiliating defeat at the High Court, they are bringing back the same irrational plans.

“This is the act of desperate government looking to distract from its appalling record.”

Experts convene for day one of first global AI Safety Summit

  • The US, France, Singapore, Italy, Japan and China among nations confirmed to attend Bletchley Park Summit
  • historic venue will play host to crucial talks around risks and opportunities posed by rapid advances in frontier AI
  • Secretary of State Michelle Donelan to call for international collaboration to mitigate risks of AI

Leading AI nations, businesses, civil society and AI experts will convene at Bletchley Park today (Wednesday 1 November) for the first ever AI Safety Summit where they’ll discuss the global future of AI and work towards a shared understanding of its risks.

Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan will open the event by welcoming an expert cast list before setting out the UK government’s vision for safety and security to be at the heart of advances in AI, in order to enable the enormous opportunities it will bring.

She will look to make progress on the talks which will pave the way for a safer world by identifying risks, opportunities and the need for international collaboration, before highlighting consensus on the scale, importance and urgency for AI opportunities and the necessity for mitigating frontier AI risks to unlock them.

The historic venue will play host to the landmark 2-day summit, which will see a small, but focused group comprising of AI companies, civil society and independent experts gather around the table to kickstart urgent talks on the risks and opportunities posed by rapid advances in frontier AI – especially ahead of new models launching next year, whose capabilities may not be fully understood.

The US, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and China are among nations confirmed as attendees at the AI Safety Summit. Representatives from The Alan Turing Institute, The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Ada Lovelace Institute are also among the groups confirmed to attend, highlighting the depth of expertise of the delegates who are expected to take part in crucial talks.

As set out by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week, the summit will focus on understanding the risks such as potential threats to national security right through to the dangers a loss of control of the technology could bring. Discussions around issues likely to impact society, such as election disruption and erosion of social trust are also set to take place.

The UK already employs over 50,000 people in the AI sector and contributes ​​£3.7 billion to our economy annually. Additionally, the UK is home to twice as many AI companies as any other European country, and hundreds more AI companies start up in the UK every year, growing our economy and creating more jobs. 

As such, day one of the summit will also host several roundtable discussions dedicated to improving frontier AI safety with key UK based developers such as Open-AI, Anthropic and UK based Deepmind. Delegates will consider how risk thresholds, effective safety assessments, and robust governance and accountability mechanisms can be defined to enable the safe scaling of frontier AI by developers.

Secretary of State for Technology, Michelle Donelan MP said: “AI is already an extraordinary force for good in our society, with limitless opportunity to grow the global economy, deliver better public services and tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges.

“But the risks posed by frontier AI are serious and substantive and it is critical that we work together, both across sectors and countries to recognise these risks.

“This summit provides an opportunity for us to ensure we have the right people with the right expertise gathered around the table to discuss how we can mitigate these risks moving forward. Only then will we be able to truly reap the benefits of this transformative technology in a responsible manner.”

Discussions are expected to centre around the risks emerging from rapid advances in AI, before exploring the transformative opportunities the technology has to offer – including in education and areas for international research collaborations.  

The Secretary of State will be joined by members of the UK’s Frontier AI Taskforce – including its Chair, Ian Hogarth – which was launched earlier this year to evaluate the risks of frontier AI models, and by representatives from nations at the cutting-edge of AI development.

They will also look at what national policymakers, the international community, and scientists and researchers can do to manage the risks and harness the opportunities of AI to deliver economic and social benefits around the world.

Day one will conclude with a panel discussion on the transformative opportunities of AI for public good now and in the long-term, with a focus on how it can be used by teachers and students to revolutionise education.

Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan will also take to the podium to deliver closing remarks to delegates, before the curtain falls on what is hoped will be an historic first day of the first ever global AI Safety Summit.

AI Summit is dominated by Big Tech and a “missed opportunity”

  • More than 100 UK and international organisations, experts and campaigners sign open letter to Rishi Sunak
  • Groups warn that the “communities and workers most affected by AI have been marginalised by the Summit.”
  • “Closed door event” is dominated by Big Tech and overly focused on speculative risks instead of AI threats “in the here and now”- PM told
  • Signatories to letter include leading human rights organisations, trade union bodies, tech orgs, leading academics and experts on AI

More than 100 civil society organisations from across the UK and world have branded the government’s AI Summit as “a missed opportunity”.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak the groups warn that the “communities and workers most affected by AI have been marginalised by the Summit” while a select few corporations seek to shape the rules.

The letter has been coordinated by the TUC, Connected by Data and Open Rights Group and is released ahead of the official AI Summit at Bletchley Park on 1 and 2 November. Signatories to the letter include:

  • Major and international trade union confederations – such as the TUC, AFL-CIO, European Trade Union Confederation, UNI Global, International Trade Union Confederation representing tens of millions of workers worldwide
  • International and UK human rights orgs – such as Amnesty International, Liberty, Article 19, Privacy International, Access Now
  • Domestic and international civil society organisations – such as Connected by Data, Open Rights Group, 5 Rights, Consumers International.
  • Tech community voices – such as Mozilla, AI Now Institute and individuals associated to the AI Council, Alan Turing Institute & British Computing Society
  • Leading international academics, experts, members of the House of Lords

Highlighting the exclusion of civil society from the Summit, the letter says: “Your ‘Global Summit on AI Safety’ seeks to tackle the transformational risks and benefits of AI, acknowledging that AI “will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another”.

“Yet the communities and workers most affected by AI have been marginalised by the Summit.

“The involvement of civil society organisations that bring a diversity of expertise and perspectives has been selective and limited.

“This is a missed opportunity.”

Highlighting the Summit’s lack of focus on immediate threats of AI and dominance of Big Tech, the letter says: “As it stands, the Summit is a closed door event, overly focused on speculation about the remote ‘existential risks’ of ‘frontier’ AI systems – systems built by the very same corporations who now seek to shape the rules.

“For many millions of people in the UK and across the world, the risks and harms of AI are not distant – they are felt in the here and now.

“This is about being fired from your job by algorithm, or unfairly profiled for a loan based on your identity or postcode.

“People are being subject to authoritarian biometric surveillance, or to discredited predictive policing.

“Small businesses and artists are being squeezed out, and innovation smothered as a handful of big tech companies capture even more power and influence.

“To make AI truly safe we must tackle these and many other issues of huge individual and societal significance. Successfully doing so will lay the foundations for managing future risks.”

Calling for a more inclusive approach to managing the risks of AI, the letter concludes: “For the Summit itself and the work that has to follow, a wide range of expertise and the voices of communities most exposed to AI harms must have a powerful say and equal seat at the table. The inclusion of these voices will ensure that the public and policy makers get the full picture.

“In this way we can work towards ensuring the future of AI is as safe and beneficial as possible for communities in the UK and across the world.”

Senior Campaigns and Policy Officer for Connected by Data Adam Cantwell-Corn said: ““AI must be shaped in the interests of the wider public. This means ensuring that a range of expertise, perspectives and communities have an equal seat at the table. The Summit demonstrates a failure to do this.

“The open letter is a powerful, diverse and international challenge to the unacceptable domination of AI policy by narrow interests.

“Beyond the Summit, AI policy making needs a re-think – domestically and internationally – to steer these transformative technologies in a democratic and socially useful direction.”

TUC Assistant General Secretary Kate Bell said: “It is hugely disappointing that unions and wider civil society have been denied proper representation at this Summit.

“AI is already making life-changing decisions – like how we work, how we’re hired and who gets fired.

“But working people have yet to be given a seat at the table.

“This event was an opportunity to bring together a wide range of voices to discuss how we deal with immediate threats and make sure AI benefits all.

“It shouldn’t just be tech bros and politicians who get to shape the future of AI.”

Open Rights Group Policy Manager for Data Rights and Privacy Abby Burke said: ““The government has bungled what could have been an opportunity for real global AI leadership due to the Summit’s limited scope and invitees.

“The agenda’s focus on future, apocalyptic risks belies the fact that government bodies and institutions in the UK are already deploying AI and automated decision-making in ways that are exposing citizens to error and bias on a massive scale.

It’s extremely concerning that the government has excluded those who are experiencing harms and other critical expert and activist voices from its Summit, allowing businesses who create and profit from AI systems to set the UK’s agenda.”

The full letter reads:

An open letter to the Prime Minister on the ‘Global Summit on AI Safety’

Dear Prime Minister,

Your ‘Global Summit on AI Safety’ seeks to tackle the transformational risks and benefits of AI, acknowledging that AI “will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another”.

Yet the communities and workers most affected by AI have been marginalised by the Summit.

The involvement of civil society organisations that bring a diversity of expertise and perspectives has been selective and limited.

This is a missed opportunity.

As it stands, the Summit is a closed door event, overly focused on speculation about the remote ‘existential risks’ of ‘frontier’ AI systems – systems built by the very same corporations who now seek to shape the rules.

For many millions of people in the UK and across the world, the risks and harms of AI are not distant – they are felt in the here and now.

This is about being fired from your job by algorithm, or unfairly profiled for a loan based on your identity or postcode.

People are being subject to authoritarian biometric surveillance, or to discredited predictive policing.

Small businesses and artists are being squeezed out, and innovation smothered as a handful of big tech companies capture even more power and influence.

To make AI truly safe we must tackle these and many other issues of huge individual and societal significance. Successfully doing so will lay the foundations for managing future risks.

For the Summit itself and the work that has to follow, a wide range of expertise and the voices of communities most exposed to AI harms must have a powerful say and equal seat at the table. The inclusion of these voices will ensure that the public and policy makers get the full picture.

In this way we can work towards ensuring the future of AI is as safe and beneficial as possible for communities in the UK and across the world.

Why global solidarity and action matter for decent work in the care economy

Care matters to us all. We all want good quality cradle to grave care for ourselves and our loved ones (writes TUC’s ABIGAIL HUNT). This is only possible if the workers delivering care services have good pay and conditions.

The global care workforce is huge, totalling at least 381 million workers, two-thirds of whom are women. Worldwide this is 11.5 per cent of total employment and 19.3 per cent of female employment. 

In the UK, adult social care jobs alone contribute at least £55.7 billion to the economy and constitute around 6 per cent of total UK employment. 

Yet care work is persistently insecure and exploitative. Low and insecure pay, bad employment conditions, violence and harassment, and a limited training and career development are part and parcel of everyday life for care workers.  

Recent TUC analysis shows that care workers across the UK are earning below the real living wage and are significantly underpaid relative to pay across the rest of the economy. The median salary of social care workers and childcare practitioners is less than two-thirds of that of all employees nationally.  

On 29th October, trade unions, governments, the UN and other social partners will mark the International Day for Care.

This day, initiated by trade unions and recognised in July through a UN General Assembly Resolution, gives visibility to the care economy – and care workers – worldwide and provides an opportunity to build momentum for increased public investment and decent work in the care sector.  

Here are three ways that global solidarity and action matter for decent work in the care economy: 

  1. The care workforce is global 

In recent years ‘global care chains’ have emerged as rising demand for care services has seen migrant workers, largely female, fill care jobs – including childcare, social care and domestic workers as well as nurses, doctors and educators – in turn leaving their own children and relatives in the care of paid workers and family in their home country.  

The UK is a key link in the chain, with labour migration increasingly recognised as critical to deliver care services. In 2022 the UK Government expanded the care worker visa scheme to help tackle the ongoing recruitment and retention crisis in social care. This meant that in 2022/23 70,000 international care workers were recruited, up 50,000 from the previous year.  

But the TUC has identified that as international recruitment has increased, so has the exploitation and abuse of migrant workers.

This includes wage theft, high recruitment fees with non-permitted repayment clauses and debt bondage as well as abuse of the immigration system by employers to blackmail workers and prevent them seeking other employment. 

Therefore the fight for decent care jobs must include the experiences, priorities and needs of international care workers.  

  1. The global union movement provides solidarity and support 

Global union solidarity and joint action is critical to build care worker movements and support workers.  

Sharing insights into working conditions helps unions provide vital workforce support. Trade unions in destination countries have provided information on immigration, employment rights and common labour abuses with migrant care workers via unions in countries of origin. This toolkit produced by unions in Italy is a great example.  

Global links also help unions make the most of political opportunities. Following the UK Labour party’s commitment to a Fair Pay Agreement in social care, the TUC has been learning from sister unions about their experiences with a similar system for sectoral collective bargaining in New Zealand.  

And global bodies like the International Trades Union Confederation and Public Services International help build care worker power. From inspiring and informing unions by documenting workers’ wins in the care economy to convening affiliates to influence global policy, international federations play a key role in the achievement of decent care work.  

  1. Global labour law and policy raise the bar on domestic standards for decent care work  

Global and regional labour standards and policy have tackled historic discrimination and exploitation against care workers by setting transnational employment rights floors – and binding governments to act.  

Recent examples include the groundbreaking 2011 Domestic Workers Convention (C. 189) at the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the UN agency that sets global labour standards, secured following a long campaign led by the International Domestic Workers’ Federation.

Many unions have now turned their attention to getting their government to ratify C.189, including in the UK. From Belgium to Mexico, where it is in force, C.189 has helped extend rights such as paid leave, minimum wages and employment contracts to domestic workers.  

In 2015 governments worldwide agreed the UN Sustainable Development Goals, including gender equality (Goal 5) and decent work (Goal 8). This has increased resources and political will, putting care on the policy agenda for the first time ever in many countries. 

Important regional initiatives have also emerged. Earlier this year European social partners agreed a social dialogue committee for social services, including adult social care and childcare, covering around 9 million workers across the EU. 

Next year will bring important opportunities to reinforce the global framework for care workers’ rights.  

In May 2024 governments, trade unions and employers will discuss decent work in the care economy at the International Labour Conference, where unions will seek commitment to a new ILO standard for care jobs. 

And we hope to see the UN General Assembly build on this year’s Resolution with a more substantive agreement committing governments to building and financing comprehensive care systems – with decent work and collective bargaining at their heart.  

Follow the International Day for Care: #InvestInCare #Care2023 

Read more about TUC’s priorities for the care workforce at these links:  

Disabled workers: #AskDontAssume

The UK Government has launched a new disability awareness campaign, #AskDontAssume (writes TUC’s EMMA KOSMIN). Disabled people have had to point out that the campaign is offensive and harmful. But the government are not listening to disabled people. 

The campaign encourages the public to ask disabled people questions about their lives. This can often be intrusive and upsetting.  

The irony is that this is the same government that have done so much to stigmatize disabled people. They have cut services to the bone, and used disabled people as a scapegoat. And they have taken no meaningful action to address systematic barriers.  

In fact, disabled workers are on the sharp end of the pay and cost of living crisis created by the government.  

Seven in ten (69%) disabled workers now earn less than £15 an hour. That’s compared to half (50%) of non-disabled workers.  

And disabled people are much more likely to be on zero hours contracts. 

We need action from the government, not a fluffy PR campaign that will lead to even more harm.

Here are five things that the government should do, that would actually be helpful: 

1. Raise the minimum wage to £15 an hour as soon as possible, to tackle the low pay that impacts disabled workers. 

2. Stamp out insecure work by banning zero hours contracts and ending fire and rehire. 

3. Make employers put reasonable adjustments in place for disabled workers. And bring in fines for employers that don’t. 

4. Bring in disability pay gap reporting. Employers should have to publish how much they pay disabled workers, compared to non-disabled workers. 

5. Make flexible working the norm for everyone.  

Disabled workers need a pay rise and better terms and conditions at work – not another meaningless PR exercise. 

HS2 North axed: Act of betrayal or exciting new opportunities?

  • UK Government to redirect vast HS2 savings into unprecedented transport investment across the country, benefiting more people, in more places, more quickly.
  • Scotland to benefit from funding to enable better links between the Cairnryan ferry terminals serving Northern Ireland and South West Scotland.
  • A total of £36 billion in savings from HS2 will be reinvested in hundreds of transport projects across the UK.

Network North will build better connectivity across the North and Midlands, with faster journey times, increased capacity, and more frequent, reliable services, according to the Westminster government.

And connections will also be strengthened across the United Kingdom, following recommendations made in the Union Connectivity Review.

Scotland will benefit from funding to solve the pinch points on the A75 between Gretna and Stranraer, providing better links between the Cairnryan ferry terminals serving Northern Ireland and southwest Scotland – recognising the importance of east-west connectivity within the UK.

The move comes alongside further investment in the connections with the M6 and Cumbria, and the A77 towards Glasgow.

Successive governments have promised it, but we ( the UK Government) are delivering long-awaited upgrades to the A1 coastal route between Newcastle and Berwick-upon-Tweed, improving the route to Edinburgh and strengthening transport links between Scotland and England.

We will continue to work with the Scottish Government to deliver the benefits of this investment package and improve connectivity across the country.

TUC slams Conservatives’ decision to axe northern leg of HS2 as a “huge act of levelling down”

Commenting on the prime minister’s speech to Conservative Party Conference, TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “The Tories have broken Britain. Today the Prime Minister confirmed what everybody already knew – he has neither a plan or vision for fixing it.

“Whether it’s failing to deliver HS2, presiding over the longest pay squeeze in modern history or record hospital waiting lists – the Conservatives’ record in government has been dire.

“We urgently need political change. The country cannot afford the Tories for one day longer. It’s time for a general election.”

Commenting on the decision to axe the northern leg of HS2, Paul said: “This a huge act of levelling down – however Rishi Sunak tries to spin it.

“The northern leg of HS2 would have created thousands of good jobs and boosted growth across the North and the Midlands.

“But these economic benefits have been squandered by the Conservatives’ gross incompetence. This failure is on them and them alone.

“The public will be rightly sceptical about more promises on transport investment for the north and the Midlands. Who can trust the Tories to deliver on anything?”

TUC: ‘We must end the grotesque inequality of the Tory era’

“It’s only right that the wealthiest pay their fair share”

  • Wealthiest “feathering their nests” while working people suffer the worst pay crisis for two centuries
  • NEW POLLING reveals significant cross-voter support for increasing taxes on wealth and excess profits, as the TUC general secretary renews call for a national conversation on tax
  • 3 in 4 think capital gains should be taxed at the same or higher than income tax – including 73% of Conservative 2019 voters
  • TUC calls for a new deal for workers to help tackle the boom in insecure work, stagnant wages and attacks on workers’ rights.

The TUC has declared that “we must put an end to the grotesque inequality of the Tory era”. Ahead of its annual Congress in Liverpool this weekend, the TUC says the Conservatives have allowed Britain’s wealthiest to “feather their nests” while working people have suffered the worst pay crisis for two centuries.

The union body adds that the Conservatives have delivered a “broken economic model which rewards wealth, not work”.

With “living standards plummeting, public services on their knees, and rampant wealth inequality blighting every corner of the country”, the union body says fair taxation must be a key part of a wider set of policies to help “reset the economy to work for working people”.

The TUC is renewing its call for a “national conversation on taxing wealth and windfalls” to help build a fairer society and “fix broken Britain”.

Significant support for fairer tax

The call comes as the union body publishes new polling, conducted by Opinium, which shows significant cross-party support for increasing taxes on wealth and excess profits.

A clear majority (61%) of the public think wealthy people should pay more tax than they are now – including over half (53%) of Conservative voters in the 2019 general election.

Only 4% of the public think wealthy people should pay less tax.

There is significant backing for increasing capital gains tax too.

Around 3 in 4 (72%) think capital gains should be taxed at the same or higher than income tax – including 73% of Conservative 2019 voters.

There was also huge support across the board for windfall taxes on excess profits:

  • Three quarters (75%) of the public support a windfall tax on banks’ excess profits – including 76% of Conservative 2019 voters
  • 4 in 5 (80%) support a windfall tax on energy companies’ profits – including 81% of Conservative 2019 voters
  • 7 in 10 (69%) support a windfall tax on large online retailers’ excess profits (like Amazon)

The TUC has already called on the government to equalise capital gains tax with income tax which could raise over £10 billion – and it has supported a bigger windfall tax on energy companies.

Recent TUC analysis set out options for taxing the wealthiest 0.3% with wealth over £3 million, £5 million and £10 million, excluding pensions.

It found a modest wealth tax on the richest 140,000 individuals – which is around 0.3% of the UK population – could deliver a £10.4 bn boost for the public purse.

Rampant inequalities

The TUC warns that huge inequality has “become the norm” in Tory Britain.

The ONS’ analysis of its Wealth and Assets Survey shows that the richest 1% of households had wealth of more than £3.6 million, and the least wealthy ten per cent had £15,400 or less. 

Of financial wealth, the ONS say the wealth held by the richest 1% of households was greater than for the entire bottom 80 per cent of the population.

At the same time, CEO pay is booming, with the bosses of the UK’s 100 biggest listed companies collecting an average £500,000 pay rise last year.

City bonuses have been at a record level for the past two years.  And banks and energy giants have been registering record profits too.

Worst pay crisis for two centuries

The TUC says working people are suffering the worst pay crisis in 200 years, which is contributing to the rampant wealth and income inequalities blighting every corner of the country.

Fifteen years on since the financial crisis, real pay is still down £360 this year compared to 2008. The average worker has lost out on a total of £21,600 since 2008, compared with wages just keeping pace with inflation.

And pay is not expected to return to 2008 level for at least another two years.

If real wages had continued to grow at the average pre-2008 rate of 2.3 per cent each year, the average worker would now be £280 per week, or £14,600 per year, better off.

Time for an economic reset

The TUC is calling for an economic reset after years of Tory failure.

As well as growing inequality, declining living standards, and public services which have been cut to the bone, the union body says the Conservatives have presided over a boom in insecure work and an attack on workers’ rights.

In addition to fairer taxation, the union body is repeating its demands for stronger protections for workers, and calling for improvements including:

  • Fair pay agreements to get pay rising in low-paid industries
  • A ban on the abusive use of zero hours contracts and a ban on fire and rehire
  • Day one employment rights, like protection against unfair dismissal.

The TUC says these policies are hugely popular across the political spectrum – as various recent polls have shown.

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “It’s time to end the grotesque inequality of the Tory era.

“As households across the country have struggled to put food on the table, energy companies and banks have registered eyewatering profits, and CEO pay has skyrocketed.

“The wealthiest have feathered their nests while working people have suffered the worst pay crisis in two centuries.

“Rampant inequalities are the direct result of a broken Tory economic model that rewards wealth, not work.

“We need a reset – and an economy that delivers better living standards for all – not just those at the top.”

On the need to kickstart a national conversation about taxing wealth, Paul added: “Now is the time for a national conversation on taxing wealth and windfalls.

“With living standards plummeting, public services on their knees, and huge wealth inequalities blighting every corner of the country, fairer taxes can help to fix broken Britain.

“But our current tax system isn’t fit for purpose. A nurse will pay a bigger share of their income in tax than a city trader does on profits from their investment portfolio. 

“That’s not only absurd and unfair – it’s bad for our economy and our public services too.

“The public overwhelmingly back increased taxes on the wealthiest and companies that have made massive profits.

“It’s only right that the wealthiest pay their fair share.”