to firmly park their tanks on the conservatives lawn. with legal migration numbers sky high, it is set to be a key issue in this campaign. ione wells, bbc news. we heard from victoria atkins, the health secretary, in that report and the liberal democrats have also been focusing on health today, as our political correspondent explained. the lib dems promising to spend an extra £1 billion a year on what is known as the public health grant. this is money given to local councils to spend on public health. they say this would reverse real terms cuts to that grant over the past decade and it will be spent on things like health checks for a0 to 74 year olds, health visits for infants and their mothers, and also wider access to blood pressure tests. the lib dems say it will be funded
servants than other parts of the public sector- servants than other parts of the ublic sector. . , . ., , public sector. the general secretary ofthe public sector. the general secretary of the public public sector. the general secretary of the public and public sector. the general secretary of the public and commercial - of the public and commercial services union, the biggest union representing civil service records in this country said today, 40,000 of his members, civil servants, are using food banks, 45,000 claim in work benefits, 47,000 into government departments are now on the national minimum wage. no way of verifying those numbers because it comes from a civil service survey. so we must take his word for it, but that would be quite extraordinary, 47,000 people in government departments and on the national minimum wage. departments and on the national minimum waie. ~ , , , . minimum wage. absolutely commanded surve a minimum wage. absolutely commanded survey a problem
to try to minimise the impact of a range of public sector strikes, due to take place between now and christmas. they could be deployed when nurses take strike action later this month. 0ur political correspondent ben wright is at westminster. from the railways to hospitals, many public services could be affected by strikes in the coming weeks, and the government says it is ramping up its plans for dealing with potential disruption. until now, ministers have tried to stay out of the wrangling between unions and employers, while also insisting on their view inflation matching pay rises in the public sector are unaffordable. but today the cabinet minister nadhim zahawi ramped up the government rhetoric, he hardened it by telling the bbc that in his view industrial action over christmas is not fair. and even saying the unions were playing into the hands of vladimir putin by dividing the country. that suggestion has infuriated the royal college of nursing, which said using russia s invasion
stage we were hearing, basically, at this stage in we were hearing, basically, at this stage in the political cycle, with an election a couple of years away perhaps. an election a couple of years away perhaps, he is presiding over the highest perhaps, he is presiding over the highest tax burden since the second world highest tax burden since the second world war highest tax burden since the second world war and the biggest fall in living world war and the biggest fall in living standards since records began in the living standards since records began in the 1950s. that is not a great backdrou in the 1950s. that is not a great backdrop. many of the difficult decisions, realterms backdrop. many of the difficult decisions, real terms cuts to government departments won t happen until after government departments won t happen until after the next election, but this is until after the next election, but this is something of a slow burner, this is something of a slow burner,
records began. that s really what they want to avoid and what that situation could prove, and although you say it is a sober set of billions of pounds of spending cuts, the real pain on that front has been delayed until after the next general election when there will be a i% election when there will be a 1% real terms rise in public spending but that will mean that many unprotected departments, according to the government s own watchdog, the office for budget responsibility, they suggest that many of these unprotected departments will suffer real terms cuts. but that will be after the next election. that said, there will be some pain this side of the election, not so much spending cuts but the tax rises he referred to. so, for example, we are facing potentially a hike in council tax next year because the treasury is assuming that 95% of local authorities will raise council tax by up to 5%. in addition, if you are not a pension and not on benefits