What does the Autumn budget mean for Community?

Steel Industry

The Labour government has taken courageous steps to repair our steel industry after years of Conservative mismanagement. The government intervened to save jobs at both British Steel and Liberty Steel, published an industrial strategy that recognises steel as a foundational industry for the UK economy and announced reforms to public procurement that will bolster demand for UK-made steel. However, workers in the sector still face uncertainty as high energy costs severely undermine our competitiveness and deter much-needed investment. The Chancellor’s budget needs to introduce measures to bring down wholesale energy prices for Britain’s steel producers and stop them from being undercut by European competitors and cheap steel imports.

Justice, Immigration and Custodial Sector

For the first time in decades, the government is investing in the justice sector with a plan to expand prison capacity to tackle overcrowding and ease the difficult work our prison officers do. However, this strategy requires investment in the sector’s workforce. The Autumn budget needs to include policies that tackle the recruitment and retention crisis in order to reduce the current levels of understaffing that are compromising the safety of workers in the sector. Moreover, it must focus on funding for rehabilitative services in prisons and electronic tagging systems.

Education and Early Years Sector

Since Labour was elected, the government has expanded free childcare provision, rolled out breakfast clubs across schools and set out ambitious plans to equip young people with the skills of the future. These policies are transformative for many children, and crucial for some of the poorest kids in our society. Nevertheless, they only begin to rectify the fifteen years of Tory and Lib-Dem mismanagement of our education system that has put unnecessary pressure on teachers and education staff. We need to see funding from the Chancellor to support policies that will provide comprehensive early years education cover, reduce class sizes, improve recruitment and retention, and crucially empower teachers to provide the good quality education that every child across our country wants, needs, and deserves.

Light Industries

The Labour government has bolstered manufacturing by striking three international trade agreements this year that open access to markets in India, the United States and the European

Union, creating new opportunities for British-made goods to be sold around the world. However, many businesses cannot exploit these opportunities due to high industrial energy costs. The Chancellor can use this budget to resolve this problem by introducing measures that cut prices for our manufacturing firms and allow them to compete in international markets. Further support is required to help light industries scale up through targeted tax incentives, green finance options, and investment in low-carbon technologies, ensuring they remain competitive while building a resilient supply chain for the future.

Finance Sector

The finance sector is a core part of the UK economy, key to helping businesses and workers thrive. It is vital that the Chancellor’s budget creates an economic environment that allows financial services to continue to grow and remain competitive.

Logistics Sector

Our logistics sector keeps Britain moving; it delivers millions of goods across our economy every single day. As the sector moves to greener ways of working, it is important that we create a tax environment that supports logistics companies to make investments in decarbonisation, allowing them to be effective, competitive, and keep the UK economy on track.

Third Sector

Workers in the third sector do vital jobs to support millions of people across the UK and abroad. It is through their work that some of the most vulnerable in our society receive the voice and services they need. Through better funding, the Autumn budget can provide the money needed to support third sector workers in delivering for communities up and down the country.

Health & Social Care

Community is proud to represent health & social care workers. The Labour government has taken ambitious steps to improve our NHS, and has made significant strides in supporting social care too. This Autumn budget must ensure that social care is properly funded to secure the good wages that social care workers deserve, and the excellent service that those who receive social care need.

Self-employed

The self-employed sector is a growing part of the UK economy. However, much of the UK tax system is confusing for self-employed workers. This Autumn budget is an opportunity for the Labour government to simplify tax rules for self-employed workers and deliver a tax system that works with the self-employed, not against them.

The Autumn Budget is an opportunity to back the working people who drive our economy.

Speaking ahead of the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Autumn budget, Community General Secretary Roy Rickhuss CBE said:  

“Over the last year, the Labour government has taken bold steps to repair our economy. The investment in steel, in the justice sector and in education has been warmly received by workers who had been suffering from fourteen years of neglect under the Conservatives. The Labour government has built on these strong foundations by securing three major trade deals, publishing a comprehensive industrial strategy and shepherding the Employment Rights Bill through Parliament.

“The Chancellor has an opportunity with this budget to continue the work of change that Labour was elected to deliver. Investment in our national infrastructure and defence capabilities should be coupled with reforms to public procurement that prioritises British-made steel. Our manufacturing sector should receive the support it needs to compete on the global market through measures that cut industrial energy costs. And our schools should have their funding upgraded to empower teachers to provide the good quality education that every child across our country wants, needs, and deserves. 

“The Chancellor must deliver a budget that champions industrial communities and offers a fair settlement to the working people who drive our economy forward.”