Employment rates by highest level of qualification

Harvested from: Office of National Statistics
http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/census/2011-census/qualifications-and-labour-market-participation-in-england-and-wales/sty-qualifications-and-employment.html

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Public Sector Pay Differential

Recent governments, Tory and Labour, have used the true fact that the average salary in the public sector is higher than that in the private sector to justify the privatisation of public services. In November 2012 the Office of National Statistics produced a report and video politely debunking government claims that public sector staff are overpaid, providing statistical reasons for the overall higher average pay. We summarise the main points below:

a) Public sector jobs have a higher proportion of higher skill jobs. Just as in the private sector, higher skilled jobs attract higher pay.
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HS2 Impact on Regional Economies

The BBC managed to dig out data on the 'winners and losers' of HS2, using a Freedom of Information request. The raw data they found conceals just how big a winner London is by reporting "London Central" seperately from London West; London South West; London South East; London South/Croydon; London North East; London North.

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Hospital's are short of beds, short of staff

The number of hospital beds available has been dropping for decades.

Shortage of beds is compounded by shortage of staff. The Parliamentary Health Select Committee reported in July 2013

• Only 17% of emergency departments were able to provide 16 hours of Consultant cover in a working day, and even worse than that during weekends.
• "Emergency staffing at all levels is under strain and a 50% fill rate of trainees is now resulting in a shortfall of senior trainees and future consultants"

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Is it actually true that our schools have small classes?

The data below is from the OECD's "Education at a glance, 2012" report, which looks at and compares the education systems in the OECD countries.

For both primary and secondary schools up to GCSE, class sizes in England are among the largest in the OECD.

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Housing Benefits: 3 in 4 new claims made by people in low paid work

Over 800,000 new Housing Benefit claims have been made since 2008 with 3 in 4 of those claims made by people in work. The government says it's making work pay yet falling real wages and soaring housing costs are pushing more working people into poverty. At the same time the cost of housing benefit continues to increase at a dramatic rate.

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