TUC boss attacks 'demolition' Government

The head of the TUC has launched an attack on the "demolition" Government as he appeals for unions to forge a coalition with the public to fight back against spending cuts.

General secretary Brendan Barber said the current austerity drive would damage public services and cost huge numbers of jobs.

He told the opening day of the TUC Congress in Manchester that unions were facing "stark realities" following the general election, with one overwhelming issue set to dominate workers for the rest of the year.

"That is the government's determination to drive through massive spending cuts, which will not only devastate the services we rely on, but do untold damage to our economic prospects."

Mr Barber said no-one could deny the depth of the recession, which he maintained was made in the boardrooms of the world's banks, before spreading "like a contagion" by the financial system, savaging jobs and living standards.

Mr Barber accused coalition politicians of breaking pledges to spare frontline services, not to increase inequality, and to protect the vulnerable.