The findings come as Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to deliver the Spring Statement with fears of a spending squeeze for some government departments.
A majority of voters believe the wealthy should pay more tax to fund broken public services, a new poll shows today.
The survey by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) also found 65% said they would have more trust in politicians if they delivered better services.
In total, almost three quarters – 71% – agreed with the statement that “the wealthy should pay more tax to fund decent public services”. Just 29% said they already pay their fair share.
TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “Voters have a clear idea of how to protect public services and avoid more austerity. “It’s the same as Keir Starmer said when he took office – ‘those with the broadest shoulders should bear the heaviest burden’.”
The findings come as Chancellor Rachel Reeves prepares to deliver the Spring Statement with fears of a spending squeeze for some government departments. On Sunday she admitted the economy is “not growing fast enough” with grim economic forecasts expected from the Office for Budget Responsibility on Wednesday.
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She told Sky News: “I’m not satisfied with the numbers that we see at the moment.” The Chancellor insisted there would be “real-terms” hikes in spending every year as she denied Labour is heading towards austerity.
She told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “Last year, I put £100 billion more into capital spending than the previous government had committed to, we put more than £20 billion into the NHS. That is a far cry from what we’ve seen under Conservative governments in the last 14 years.”
But she refused to say whether unprotected departments – such as the Ministry of Justice and Home Office – will see their budgets raided. The Chancellor also said around 10,000 civil service jobs will be cut in a bid to save around £2billion-per-year by 2029-2030.
“We are, by the end of this Parliament, making a commitment that we will cut the costs of running government by 15%,” the Chancellor said. But the Public and Commercial Services Union General Secretary, Fran Heathcote, said any cuts will have an impact on frontline services.
READ MORE: Chancellor Rachel Reeves warned families will be £1,400 worse off in grim analysis
She added: “You hear that every day from the public, that they wait too long on the phone when they try to make tax payments, jobseekers rushed through the system in just ten minutes because there aren’t enough staff to see them, victims of crime waiting until 2027 to have their cases heard in the courts as well as the backlog in the asylum system which results in additional hotel costs.
“The impact of making cuts will not only disadvantage our members but the public we serve and the services they rely on.”
The Chancellor’s Spring Statement comes amid growing unease among Labour MPs after last week’s move to cut £5billion from sickness and disability benefits.
More details on the cuts – including the impact on poverty levels – are expected to be published alongside the Spring Statement this week.
Labour MP Brian Leishman said the decision will “impoverish” the most vulnerable and “shows a basic lack of humanity”. Speaking to Holyrood Magazine over the weekend, the MP said: “These are the people that we should be throwing our arms around and helping.”
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