Truss Feels Heat After U-Turn Over £9bn In Cuts
The Guardian|August 03, 2022
Liz Truss suffered a humiliating setback in her attempt to become the next prime minister yesterday as she was forced into a U-turn on civil service pay after a backlash from within her own party.
Heather Stewart and Jessica Elgot
Truss Feels Heat After U-Turn Over £9bn In Cuts

The foreign secretary swiftly abandoned the cornerstone of her plan for a "war on Whitehall waste" when it was revealed it could lead to pay cuts for millions of teachers, nurses and police officers.

The foreign secretary had proposed creating "regional pay boards" to set civil sector pay, matching it more closely to local labour markets outside London and the southeast.

But it was scrapped within hours after analysts pointed out the purported £8.8bn saving from the policy was only remotely achievable by cutting wages across the public sector.

With ballot papers dropping this week, Truss is widely regarded as the frontrunner in the race to succeed Boris Johnson; but one new poll put her just five points ahead of Rishi Sunak, while Conservative MPs say many members remain undecided. The Teesside mayor, Ben Houchen, a popular figure within the party and a Sunak backer, said he was "speechless" at the policy, which he said would work against the much-trailed Conservative policy of levelling up.

"There is simply no way you can do this without a massive pay cut for 5.5 million people - including nurses, police officers and our armed forces outside London. So much that we've worked for in places like Teesside would be undone," he said.

"Red wall" MPs including Jacob Young and Richard Holden had also raised alarm at the policy announced overnight, as well as the former cabinet minister Simon Hart, who said it would amount to cuts of nearly £3,000 for workers in Wales.

This story is from the August 03, 2022 edition of The Guardian.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the August 03, 2022 edition of The Guardian.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM THE GUARDIANView All
Ruined town re-emerges as Philippines dam dries up
The Guardian

Ruined town re-emerges as Philippines dam dries up

Ruins of a centuries-old town have emerged at a dam parched by drought in the northern Philippines.

time-read
1 min  |
May 04, 2024
"This was a crisis': Hope Hicks tells of panic over Trump recording at hush money trial
The Guardian

"This was a crisis': Hope Hicks tells of panic over Trump recording at hush money trial

Hope Hicks, Donald Trump's 2016 campaign secretary, described the former US president's staffers' panic when a recording emerged in which he had bragged about groping women, saying \"this was a crisis\" for his presidential campaign, as she took the witness stand yesterday in Trump's criminal hush money trial.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 04, 2024
'Jews need to fight back' Shock and sadness in Israel at overseas protests
The Guardian

'Jews need to fight back' Shock and sadness in Israel at overseas protests

At the Jerusalem theatre, concertgoers and staff expressed a mixture of anger, sadness and defiance as weeks of proPalestinian protests across dozens of US college campuses reached a tumultuous climax 6,000 miles away.

time-read
3 mins  |
May 04, 2024
Tenants should be given the 'right to garden', says leading horticulturalist
The Guardian

Tenants should be given the 'right to garden', says leading horticulturalist

Developers and landlords should give tenants a \"right to garden\", a leading horticulturalist has said, as part of a campaign for more green spaces in new-build homes.

time-read
3 mins  |
May 04, 2024
Last rites? Decline in vulture numbers forces Parsis to adapt burial practices
The Guardian

Last rites? Decline in vulture numbers forces Parsis to adapt burial practices

Traditional Zoroastrian burial rites are becoming impossible to perform because of the decline of vultures in India, Iran and Pakistan.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 04, 2024
In Plato's words How AI is helping to reveal the secrets of ancient scrolls
The Guardian

In Plato's words How AI is helping to reveal the secrets of ancient scrolls

More than 2,000 years after he died, Plato, the towering figure of classical antiquity and founder of the Academy, still makes the news.

time-read
3 mins  |
May 04, 2024
Boy convicted of murder after stabbing near primary school
The Guardian

Boy convicted of murder after stabbing near primary school

A 15-year-old boy who stabbed another teenager through the heart on the way home from school was found guilty of murder yesterday.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 04, 2024
Super-rich spending up to £400,000 on Paris Olympics packages
The Guardian

Super-rich spending up to £400,000 on Paris Olympics packages

Members of the global super-rich are spending as much as $500,000 (£400,000) on \"ultra exclusive\" packages for the Paris 2024 Olympics that promoters claim include meeting athletes, access to the athletes' village, and \"the chance to be part of the opening ceremony\".

time-read
2 mins  |
May 04, 2024
Boost for travel agents as Race Across the World grips viewers
The Guardian

Boost for travel agents as Race Across the World grips viewers

No celebrities, no luxuries, and a miserly £20,000 in prize money.

time-read
1 min  |
May 04, 2024
Who ya gonna call? Ghostbusters becomes latest film to bring in cultural consultants
The Guardian

Who ya gonna call? Ghostbusters becomes latest film to bring in cultural consultants

Film and TV productions are turning to a growing number of \"cultural consultants\" to help them navigate the choppy waters of sensitivities around ethnicity and faith.

time-read
3 mins  |
May 04, 2024