Labour’s biggest union donor has accused Rachel Reeves of breaking promises to workers who have been left “unable to trust” the party following the Budget.
Unite’s general-secretary, Sharon Graham, criticised the watering down of the Employment Rights Bill (EBR), which would have allowed workers to make an unfair dismissal claim on the first day in a new job, as she delivered her damning verdict on the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement.
The union boss said Ms Reeves had hit “ordinary workers” with her fiscal measures, while billionaires were left “unscathed”.
Ms Reeves announced £26billion in tax hikes on Wednesday, including by freezing thresholds on income tax.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Ms Graham said: “The Chancellor’s stealth tax increase has hit ordinary workers such as health workers, engineers and tanker drivers while city bankers and billionaires have been left unscathed.
“The stealth tax is a tax on workers pure and simple. A promise broken to workers.”
The Unite chief added that Labour’s U-turn on the EBR had left workers not able to trust the party.
“Those promises which were campaigned on, have failed to be delivered. Broken,” she told the newspaper.
Unite general secretary, Sharon Graham, accused Rachel Reeves of breaking promises to workers in her Budget
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PA
“Workers have been left unable to trust Labour.”
Unite, which is formed of more than 1.1 million members, donated £746,000 to Labour between April and June this year.
It has previously threatened to “re-examined” its relationship with the party over the Government’s handling of the long-running Birmingham bin strikes.
Ms Reeves is facing calls to leave her post after being accused of lying to the public about the true of Britain’s financial “black hole”.
Rachel Reeves unveiled £26billion of tax hikes in her Budget
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UK PARLIAMENT/PA
The Chancellor warned the public several times “tough decisions” would have to be made at the Budget because of a £30billion “hole” in the public finances.
But on Friday, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) revealed it had actually told the Treasury on September 17 the “black hole” was £2.5billion, less than a tenth of what she claimed.
OBR chief Richard Hughes had written to the Treasury Committee confirming that “at no point” did the Chancellor face a black hole greater than that amount.
By October 31, the watchdog said the black hole had disappeared and had in fact been replaced by a £4.2billion surplus.
Reform UK’s deputy leader Richard Tice said the Chancellor had “deliberately scared businesses, consumers and the markets” before her Budget.
“She has deliberately crashed the economy and must now consider her position,” he said.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch outright accused her of “lying to the public” as she branded Ms Reeves “shameful”.
“Yet more evidence, as if we needed it, that the Chancellor must be sacked,” she said.
“For months, Ms Reeves has lied to the public to justify record tax hikes to pay for more welfare.
“Her Budget wasn’t about stability. It was about politics: bribing Labour MPs to save her own skin. Shameful.”
Shadow housing secretary, Sir James Cleverly, said Labour has already lost the next general election after breaking its manifesto pledge in the Budget not to raise taxes on “working people”.
“They have lost the next general election,” he told The Express .
“That is baked in. There is no way they’re coming back from this.”