New poll highlights Labour's most unpopular spending cut after slashing back Tory plans
According to a new poll, only a quarter of the public believe the plans announced by Reeves are fair
Getty/ YouGov
In her first major speech as chancellor, Rachel Reeves outlined her audit of public spending to MPs and revealed what she called a multi-billion pound "black hole" in government finances.
She claimed the last Government had left her with "difficult decisions" on tax at the next Budget but vowed "to fix the mess we inherited" from the Conservatives.
The Treasury identified a "forecast overspend" of £21.9billion this year while Reeves announced cuts worth £5.5billion, rising to £8.1billion next year.
Some of these cuts include means-testing for pensioners' winter fuel allowances and cancelling plans announced by the previous Government.
The poll results show 58 per cent of Britons think it is necessary for the Government to cut back on spending
YouGov
For spending, Reeves announced an average 5.5 per cent pay rise to public sector employees and a pay offer of 22 per cent to junior doctors to end the ongoing strike action.
While six in 10 Britons (58 per cent) think it is necessary for the Government to cut its spending, 45 per cent believe that they are cutting unfairly.
According to a poll by YouGov, only a quarter (24 per cent) of the public believe the plans announced by Reeves represent a fair path including less than half (46 per cent) of Labour voters.
The most unpopular cut is to cancel the previous Government's plans to build, replace or expand 40 hospitals.
Some 63 per cent of Britons view the decision is the wrong thing to do, while just one in six (17 per cent) think it was the right decision for Reeves to axe.
Similarly, cancelling plans to put a cap on the maximum amount of money that people can be required to pay towards long-term care was also largely unpopular.
Only 18 per cent of Britons supported the plan while six in ten (59 per cent) felt it was the wrong decision.
Meanwhile, respondents were divided over means-testing the winter fuel allowance for pensioners so it only goes to those receiving pension credit or other means-tested benefits.
The announcement left 43 per cent considering it the right decision while 42 per cent said the Government was making the wrong call.
As expected, opposition to the policy increased with age, as just one in five 18 to 24-year-olds view it as the wrong thing to do compared to two-thirds of those over 65.
This graph shows Britons think public sector pay rises are the right thing to do, but do not agree with cancelling hospital building or social care cap
YouGov
LATEST FROM MEMBERSHIP:
However, over half of Britons (53 per cent) believed the Government made the right call to cancel the proposed road tunnel near Stonehenge with only 15 per cent opposing the cut and 32 per cent saying they don't know.
Public sector pay rises have proved popular with the public as 65 per cent think giving a raise to public sector employees was the right thing to do.
However, the plan was not as popular with 2024 Conservative (45 per cent) and Reform UK (51 per cent) voters compared to Labour (84 per cent) and Lib Dems (82 per cent).
Another 58 per cent believe offering junior doctors a pay offer was a good call while 28 per cent oppose it.
This data was taken from a YouGov poll of 2233 British adults conducted between July 30 and 31 2024.