Tens of thousands marched to protest against cuts
Tens of thousands marched through central London to protest against Government cuts. Protests were also held in Belfast and Glasgow.
Ed Balls appeals to first time buyers in Labour speech
Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls unveiled his party's plan for kick-starting the economy, starting with measures to help first time buyers.
Union anger over cuts escalates with strike option
While the chances of a General Strike remain remote, a majority of unions have proven determined to serve an angry warning to Westminster.
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Margaret Thatcher's legacy 'fundamentally wrong'
The news of the Baroness Thatcher's death has also drawn reactions from some of her critics.
Former London mayor Ken Livingstone told Sky News:
– KEN LIVINGSTONE ON SKY NEWSShe created today's housing crisis, she produced the banking crisis, she created the benefits crisis ... Every real problem we face today is the legacy of the fact she was fundamentally wrong.
Paul Kenny, general secretary of the GMB trade union, said:
– Paul Kenny, general secretary, GMB unionHer legacy involves the destruction of communities, the elevation of personal greed over social values and legitimising the exploitation of the weak by the strong.
Lindsey German, convenor of the Stop The War Coalition, said:
– Lindsey German, Stop The War CoalitionShe led alongside Ronald Reagan the escalation of the Cold War. She introduced cruise missiles to Britain and fought the Falklands war.
Her arms deals with Saudi Arabia were notorious. Her legacy was Tony Blair who built enthusiastically on her record.
Strikes planned to 'cause disruption at key times'
Mark Serwotka, the general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) said, today's strikes by Revenue and Customs staff are part of an "ongoing campaign" to "cause disruption for the Government at key times". He added:
Civil and public servants are working harder than ever to provide the services we all rely on but instead of rewarding them, the Government is imposing cuts to their pay, raiding their pensions and trying to rip up their basic working conditions.
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Half-day walkout for Revenue and Customs workers
Thousands of Revenue and Customs workers will stage a half-day walkout today, marking the latest phase of industrial action by civil servants.
Members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, which has over 50,000 members in HM Revenue and Customs, will stage picket lines outside offices across the country.
A 24-hour strike in the Home Office and UK Border Agency planned for today was postponed after a legal challenge.
It will now be escalated to a week-long series of walkouts across various parts of the department in a fortnight's time.
Revenue and Customs staff set to go on strike
Thousands of staff from Revenue and Customs will go on strike tomorrow in the latest phase of months of industrial action by civil servants in a row over jobs, pensions and terms and conditions.
Members of the PCS Union will stage a half-day walkout until lunchtime. Officials say it will disrupt the start of the new tax year.
– Mark Serwotka, PCS General SecretaryThese strikes are part of an ongoing campaign of industrial action and protests to cause disruption for the Government at key times and put pressure on ministers who are refusing to even talk to us.
Civil and public servants are working harder than ever to provide the services we all rely on but instead of rewarding them, the Government is imposing cuts to their pay, raiding their pensions and trying to rip up their basic working conditions.
Unions in talks to 'fight back' against cuts
Asked if he was talking with other union leaders about a general strike, PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka told Murnaghan on Sky News:
We are definitely having a discussion about generalised strike action.
More imminently than that we are having the beginnings of a much more detailed discussion between unions who have real industrial issues in front of them now about co-ordinating their efforts to ensure that our attempts to fight back and defend our members is more effective.
My own opinion is that what the Government is doing is getting so increasingly unpopular that even a 24-hour strike involving millions of people across the economy would be an incredibly important moment.
It would show that people can fight back and say we don't just have to accept our lot.
PCS union in talks with others over general strike
A union leader has confirmed he is in talks with counterparts about staging a general strike.
Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), said discussions were under way about action that would show people can "fight back".
It comes after it emerged last week that Unite had submitted documents to the TUC calling for a 24-hour general strike against austerity measures.
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Unite: 'UK shivers as sun shines on British Gas bosses'
Unite has called on the government to introduce an immediate cap on excessive executive pay which was “an insult to millions of working people living through the worst recession in a generation and the worst March weather in 50 years.”
Enough is enough – this excessive greed which sees casino bankers and the corporate elite running British business pocket millions, while working people struggle to pay their soaring household bills must stop.
As Britain goes through the worst March weather in half a century, the sun shines brightly on Centrica’s bosses while those struggling to pay the bills shiver.
British Gas is making huge profits, but an increasingly number of people are faced with fuel poverty, where more than 10% of their income goes on fuel costs.
– Len McCluskey, Unite general secretaryThe government, presided over by the Bullingdon duo of Cameron and Osborne, is squeezing the life out of people's living standards and is immune to the daily struggle of ordinary people. They either don’t care or are too weak to act on the excessive executive pay which is being made off the back soaring fuel bills and hard pressed customers.
Unite: Yorkshire ambulance workers to hold strike
Ambulance workers are to stage a 24-hour strike in a long-running row over issues including cuts.
Unite said its 450 members in the Yorkshire service, including paramedics and other staff, will walk out on April 2 and ban overtime from March 26.
The union warned that further strikes could be held.
Unite said the Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust had ceased to recognised the union after it raised concerns about patient safety over plans to make £6 million of savings over the next five years.
Union members voted by 61% in favour of strikes and 83% for other forms of industrial action.
NASUWT: Teachers to stage strikes in the summer
Teachers in England are to stage a series of strikes in the summer, the National Union of Teachers and the NASUWT announced today.
The strikes are part of a continuing row over pay, pensions and workload.
Freezing pay 'heaping financial misery' on NHS workers
Staff face another year of hardship, the Unison's head of health said today, after the Government announced that 1.4 million public sector employees will receive a 1% pay rise from next month.
The union reported more health workers, including nurses, are turning to its welfare fund for help to pay for rising fuel bills, debt advice and emergency loans. Christina McAnea said:
What kind of message does it send to health workers about the value this Government places on their work? And what incentive is there for young people to join the NHS when they are so undervalued?
Freezing and squeezing pay is crushing morale and heaping financial misery on more than a million NHS workers.
At the same time, the NHS is going through a massive reorganisation and staff are dealing with job cuts, rationing and ever increasing patient numbers.
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