Dear Editor,
Over the Christmas period, I would like to pay tribute to those who work in our public and emergency services. Alongside showing our gratitude, we must also show we’re on their side.
Almost a decade of crippling austerity, imposed by successive Governments, has placed substantial pressures on those that we rely on to keep us safe and provide urgent care when we need it most.
With ever-rising vacancy rates, made worse by the uncertainty of Brexit, our NHS workforce has been stretched to breaking point. The Met Police has also suffered from almost a billion pounds worth of cuts over the last decade, and we have also seen a worrying drop in the number of frontline firefighters.
On top of this, local authorities across the capital have been stripped of their capacity to reach out help the most vulnerable in our communities.
We cannot expect public service workers to continue to bear the brunt of austerity – it is unfair and unsustainable. Too many have already suffered an unjust pay cut and freeze and will be feeling the pinch this Christmas.
This Government must, without delay, properly support our public services and start to repair the damage that has been done to our society over the last nine years.
Yours,
Unmesh Desai AM
London Assembly Member for City and East
Notes to editors
- Unmesh Desai AM is the London Assembly Member for City and East (covering Barking and Dagenham, Newham, Tower Hamlets and the City of London).