UNISON and TUC report shows extent of regressive budget

28 June 2010

Research commissioned by UNISON, the UK’s leading public sector trade union, and the TUC shows how hard the new government’s emergency budget will hit low income families.

By taking into account what services households lose, along with changes in taxes and benefits, the report finds that the impact of the emergency budget will be deeply regressive. All households stand to take a hit, but the poorest will suffer the biggest blow.

Assuming the planned cuts fall evenly across non-ring fenced departments, the average annual cut in public spending on the poorest tenth of households is £1,344, equivalent to 20.5% of their household income. In contrast, the average annual cut in public spending on the richest tenth of households is £1,135, equivalent to just 1.6% of their household income.

Dave Prentis, UNISON General Secretary, said:
“It doesn’t matter how much the Tory and Lib Dems try to spin the emergency budget, we are not all in this together. The truth is that the poorest, the least able to lose money from their household budgets, will be hardest hit by the coalition’s cuts. Meanwhile, the wealthy, and the Bankers who got us into this mess, get away lightly.

“The government is running the risk of a lost decade of decline, by pressing ahead with plans that will hit the spending power of hardworking families. Throwing hundreds of thousands of public sector workers on the dole queues will cripple local economies, closing down local shops and businesses. And if vital public services are cut to the bone, people will be left without the support they need to pick up the pieces.”

Read the full report here:
Don’t forget the spending cuts: The real impact of Budget 2010 - PDF

 
 
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