D-Day for George Osborne
Today is the day that George Osborne, the new Chancellor of the Exchequer, gets the chance to show what he's made of as he looks to tackle the UK budget deficit. He is set to cut budgets for IT, property, advertising and recruitment although many of the job cuts expected to accompany the £6 billion in spending cuts could come from a recruitment freeze for the civil service.
Over the last few years there has been a massive increase in the number of UK workers employed directly or indirectly by the state. Some estimates place the figure as high as 50% of the UK workforce which shows how the public sector expanded under the last Labour government. Even though every political party is well aware that investment cuts are required in the public sector this is just stage one of a serious head to head between the UK coalition government and the unions.
The unions are desperate to protect the rights and jobs of their members and the UK government is adamant that public-sector investment needs a radical overhaul. There is little chance of finding middle ground between the two parties and many believe we could be in for a prolonged period of friction and strike activity.
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