TUC: Working families ‘bearing the brunt’ of cuts

Brendan Barber, TUC general secretary, commented on the tax changes and spending cuts that come into effect today:

“With wages failing to keep up with the cost of living and the VAT rise biting into household budgets, these tax credit cuts could not have come at a worse time for families.

“Working families are bearing the brunt of government austerity measures, from cuts to vital public services such as sure start centres, libraries and youth clubs, to the freezing, cutting and scrapping of tax credits that are hitting household incomes.

“The government must do more to help hard pressed families by protecting the public services they rely on and ensuring that a greater share of the tax burden is placed on the banks that helped create the deficit, rather than the working families who are being made to pay for it.”