The latest figures for wages confirm the Labour trend. They see the public sector as good, the private sector as bad.They think the public sector is still underpaid, and the private sector paid too much. Annual average earnings growth was 6.1% for the public sector and 2.8% for the private sector, a very large gap. Bonuses have to be earned by generating more turnover and profit in the private sector. The public sector pays bonuses for failure, as with the bonus payments to senior Post Office Executives for losses and false charges against staff. The bosses of HS 2 got rewards for big delays and massive cost overruns.
In the private sector people have to compete to get quality up and costs down. Failure to achieve a good enough performance leads to job losses and sackings for poor performance. In the worst cases it leads to bankruptcy, business closure and loss of all jobs. Big failings on quality and cost in the public sector like hospital avoidable deaths or rail crashes caused by nationalised tracks and signals lead to bigger grants of money and agreement it was no-one’s fault. The answer for most problems in the public sector is more resources. In the private sector it is often better management.
The private sector is finding the demands of the public sector too great, leading to businesses reducing staff, cutting other costs, or closing down. A haughty and demanding public sector seeks through regulation to make normal working more and more difficult, whilst through higher taxes it makes it less and less worthwhile.
No wonder vacancies have fallen again, jobs are down and unemployment up. Labour’s savage tax and regulatory attack on the private sector is having the predictable effect of closing things down or forcing cuts the public sector would never accept for itself.
August 19, 2026
Absolutely. The public sector is living on the back of the shrinking private sector, whom they think are all city bankers.
Reeves did so much damage in her two years in the job – NI, Minimum Wage, etc – which is causing the reduction in employment of course.
The most galling thing for me is the overpaid state pension recipients to be eyeing up private pension pots re. inheritance tax. Many of us are stuck on these types of pensions because of the ravages of New Labour upending the pension premise resulting in the shuttering of final salary schemes.
Sickening hypocrites.
August 19, 2026
‘ The public sector pays bonuses for failure, as with the bonus payments to senior Post Office Executives for losses and false charges against staff.
Fujitsu still have not paid compensation to most of the falsely charged staff. Yet the still do a lot of business in the UK. Why is the money not simply taken from Fujitsu by the government or the so-called regulators?
August 19, 2026
Indeed. Vast numbers of Covid vaccines damaged people need proper compensation too and a criminal investigation for those absurdly pushing them even to the young and children and those who had already had Covid.
August 19, 2026
The government were the ones who charged the post masters with crimes, then took them to court and jailed them, not Fujitsu. Fujitsu supplied faulty software, originally from ICL.
Fujitsu have said that they will pay their share of compensation.
August 19, 2026
Indeed and the workers’ rights and tenants’ rights bills and inflation driven up by this excessive taxation and the insane net zero agenda – the doom loop lunacy continues.
For so many work simply does not pay so why bother.
August 19, 2026
The latest figures for wages confirm the Labour trend. They see the public sector as good, the private sector as bad.They think the public sector is still underpaid, and the private sector paid too much.
And the Liebour party are never going to change while we have deluded people still voting them back in to take us back to the dark ages of the 60s & 70s, the snooner they are gone the better off will be
August 19, 2026
They will eventually be forced to change – by the bond markets and they will, as usual with socialists, run out of other people’s money to waste.
See also Jabcob Rees-Mogg’s recent videos on the state sector private sector wage rises and pensions.
August 19, 2026
We also of course have many in the private sector doing unproductive things or even damaging things due to the endless red tape pushed by the private sector. This in compliance, planning red tape, motorist mugging cameras, HS2, Covid Vaccines…
August 19, 2026
It’s not just employment where there’s a discrepancy, we now have it in the planning sector. Raynes is making it easier for retrospective planning for the travelling community. Irrespective of the fact a large percentage have fixed abodes elsewhere. Another section of society which contributes very little like the channel invaders but get 5 star treatment.
We are rapidly running out of net contributors which will eventually bring the whole house of cards collapsing.
August 19, 2026
Proponents of an accelerated green transition for the UK point to data showing massive potential for new employment
The UK’s net-zero economy already supports over a million jobs nationwide and generates approximately £105 billion for the economy. This reflects a 35.5% increase since 2015
The direct oil and gas extraction workforce is relatively small compared to the whole UK labour market at roughly 30,000 direct jobs
The green economy is the fastest growing sector of the export economy by far with renewable electricity exports to the EU earning nearly £1billion in 2025
On a wider scale, institutions like the World Resources Institute note that while the global low-carbon transition involves substantial job churn, the energy space alone is projected to add 20 million jobs globally in electrification, grid expansion and renewable developments.
In China, “wind farm curtailment” amounted to less than 0.4% of total electricity production in 2024
Reply The green jobs will mainly be in China which exports solar panels and wind turbines to us. Figures for green jobs in UK are exaggerated. Definition includes recycling staff, energy analysts and auditors, heat pump engineers, sustainable farming advisers etc, many unrelated to renewables transition.
August 19, 2026
Green jobs rely on massive subsidies from the taxpayer so are in effect more public sector outlay.
True innovation and competition is welcome in every sector and we should lead in innovation as that is about the only area we can outperform China these days but subsidies are the enemy of improvement.
August 19, 2026
SG. Most of the renewables jobs are in compliance. No added value just drain in household budgets. All the doid jobs are abroad, very similar to importing Norwegian oil and gas from the very same basin used by UK companies.
The whole Net Zero scam is bankrupting households and the country. Industry is relocating as we gave the most expensive electricity in the world.
August 19, 2026
The reason the “green” economy is booming is because the taxpayer has subsidised it. According to Professor Gordon Hughes of the renewable Energy Foundation, we have already spent £220bn (2024 prices) on Net Zero and we are currently funding £26bn/year in subsidies. In addition NESO say their Clean Power 2030 project will cost “over £40bn annually”. Most of the “green” jobs have gone to China and we could not have afforded all the wind turbines and solar panels if they were not made in China using cheap coal power, slave labour and ignoring all the environmental damage caused by mining and the production leaving toxic tailing lakes. The fact that there are only 30,000 oil and gas jobs in the North Sea is because the energy gained is so efficient, unlike renewables. If the number of “green” jobs is so important why not also de-industrialise farming and go back to manual labour? Whilst our electricity exports to the EU in 2025 were £1bn (estimated to be 50% “green”) our electricity imports in that year were £3.55bn.
August 19, 2026
The website CfD Hub shows that the weighted average CfD price for “green” renewables is currently £152.22/MWhr against the average market reference price (gas generation) of £85.11. And the Low Carbon Contracts Company website shows that apart from 3 quarters in 2021/2 when Russia invaded Ukraine “cheap” renewables have had to be subsidised. No wonder the “green” economy is flourishing while the economy as a whole is rapidly declining to pay for it.
https://www.cfd-hub.com/
https://www.lowcarboncontracts.uk/resources/scheme-dashboards/cfd-historical-data-dashboard/
August 19, 2026
Oh, I forgot to mention that the £85.11/MWhr market reference price (gas generation) includes around £20/MWhr carbon tax. So £152.22/ MWhr “green” electricity against around £65/MWhr for gas generated electricity. No wonder our electricity prices are the highest in the developed world and we are rapidly de-industrialising.
August 19, 2026
Good morning.
The one aspect between Public and Private that is not often spoken about, is job security in a recession. Private enterprise needs a growing economy, whereas the Pubic Sector has no such issues. It remains as is whatever happens and, only government policy can affected it.
We need a smaller State and need to get people to rely on themselves more. There needs to be more choice and competitive measure put in place. This will drive down costs and improve productivity.
August 19, 2026
Successive governments have made the population more dependent on government. The cry now always goes up “what can the government do to solve…..” whenever something out of the ordinary effects a cohort of people. Government intervention is generally cumbersome, costly with unintended consequences for others
It would take a brave government to get out of the way but that is what we need.
August 19, 2026
We have had family members work in both sectors and they will confirm the difference is like chalk and cheese between them.
Public sector almost jobs for life, good salary, guaranteed and excellent pension schemes, planned promotion scheme, good holiday entitlement, many months of sick pay if ill, lazy management, guaranteed budgets to spend little sense of urgency, with few deadlines.
Private Sector competitive wage/salary, minimum pension scheme, limited sick pay if at all, holiday entitlement minimal unless years of service completed, tight budgets, risk of redundancy or company move.
Public sector and wages paid for completely by the taxpayers, as are their gold plated pensions, and they get to make the rules for the rest of us.
Does not seem right really does it.
August 19, 2026
‘Gold plated pensions’ is a term invented by rags like the Daily Mail, after Gordon Brown ruined the pensions for most of the population.
I have a pension inflation-proofed at RPI from the private sector. I paid no contributions towards it.
Decent pensions used to be normal across the board until Gordon Brown came along.
August 19, 2026
Peter
Gold plated pensions as I call them, are those where the employer makes a substantial contribution, in the government sector up to 25% of salary, then the pension is index linked after being based on the last two years salary.
I have absolutely no problem with Private industry offering such to attract staff, paid for out of their commercial trading/earnings, but when the government offer such, as well as a very competitive salary (all funded at the taxpayers expense) many receivers of such still moan.
Most commercial businesses now do not offer such schemes as they are simply not viable in the long term, but government agencies still do.
Compare that to self employed people who completely fund their own contributions out of their own earnings, no employer contribution, and have to purchase an annuity at market rates, and you find you need to live 30 years just to get your own money back, galling when that same self employed person is funding Government employees pension contributions out of the tax they are paying, when they cannot afford to invest in their own private pension.
August 19, 2026
Defined benefits pensions was what these pensions were usually called before the bogus outrage from the press.
August 19, 2026
Unions and patronage
August 19, 2026
Yet more appalling incompetence by the Metropolitan police and British Transport police, this time over Simon Levy’s murders and sexual assaults
Levy’s crime spree spanned from 2018 to 2025 and included myriad sex attacks on women in public spaces, on the Tube and two murders. As the Metropolitan Police, BTP and the courts failed to stop him despite numerous arrests, recalls to prison (where he sexually assaulted a prison officer) and reports by dozens of women
As is habitual in these cases, (only ed)two have been suspended pending investigation by the “Independent” Office for Police Conduct
As is also habitual when this sort of incompetence comes to light, the MPS has decided that in order to divert the public’s attention from their institutional Ineptitude, it’s necessary to organise a blitz on electric two wheeled vehicles
Apparently, the blitz targets a surge in criminals using high-powered electric two-wheelers for rapid-escape mobile phone thefts and robberies. And definitely not sexual assaults in broad daylight by known sex offenders.
August 19, 2026
6.1% and with the pension perks that go with it?
I would be interested to see how that 6.1% breaks down across the pay scales? Did the mandarins and managers get more than the grass roots workers.
With public sector salaries, whose jobs are also protected (let us not forget the Key worker status keeping public sector workers paid and at home during Covid) getting paid on average more than a similar private sector worker surely it is time to revisit employer pension contributions at 20%+ and defined benefit schemes.
For those who would counter by telling us to apply for these jobs, I say have you ever looked at an application. It is designed to keep the jobs for the boys and is interminable. Or the approach is that of TfL where outsiders can not apply.
August 19, 2026
“public sector is still underpaid, and the private sector paid too much”
Start with some basics Public Sector Pensions, defined benefit(a promise, a rock solid promise), generally unfunded and paid by the taxpayer regardless – what value has that in income terms?. Yet it has no value when calculating income provided by the Taxpayer.
Private sector pension is paid for out of earned income. The income provided is based on the value accrued in the fund itself
There is a reasonable case that when talking Public Sector earning the funding needed for the ‘gold plated pension’ should also be seen as income
August 19, 2026
In general employment conditions in the public sector are better too – automatic pay rises not linked to performance, ditto promotion, better pensions, greater amounts sick leave taken, reduced working hours, greater flexibility to work from home, etc. There is a limited incentive for anyone to try to do their job to a high standard. We will see this as the government take over running the railways and the performance rather than improving (due to stopping all those dividends the private sector pay to shareholders) will get worse. This will even be true of privatisation basket cases like Thames Water.
August 19, 2026
Everything is possible when there is an economy. The UK Parliament, its Government keep on raiding the economy to give money away on personal political projects, so the economy recedes and things get worse and still the UK Parliament keeps spending.
Then we get the blame game! The North is worse off than the South so the South must be punished and the money sent North. Or I will hammer 75% of the electorate to keep my home town loving me. More important to have homes for the invading criminals than the decline contributing indigenous species. Lets give some people subsidised busses and let those without busses pay for it. Lets give a handful of people a discount on their electricity – so the will love us, who care who pays – its a headline. The fact that is the UK Parliament that keeps UK Energy prices artificially high is never part of the equation
Bias and prejudice is riddled throughout the UK Parliament, not one stands up and says how do we ‘earn’ to pay! Not one cares about supporting their constituents why should they they are in place out of loyalty to their ‘Gang Boss’ their electorate doesn’t come into it
August 19, 2026
It’s not just becoming obvious that a two tier system exists in regard to the private/public salaries – we are two tier Britain after all, and that applies to justice and a lot of socialist thinking.
Let’s take a look at what Burnham is doing, very briefly. He wants to give the impression that he is concerned about our problems and will help make things better. That’s all very well, but it’s a distraction from what labour are doing in the background. They haven’t reversed any of their major programs that will do us the most harm and will herald in a socialist state so Orwellian the old USSR will look like a paradise by comparison.
They still:
– want us all digitised and forced to show our proof of identity at every possible checkpoint;
– intend to lock us into the EU at a huge cost and no benefit;
– work against the family unit and the middle classes;
– support a failing UN that wants to elect a most unsuitable candidate as it’s head;
– want us all scanned at every opportunity with a technology unproven;
– plan to use the lessons of covid lockdowns against us;
– pursue us with their tax and spend policies – they don’t think we should own anything and that’s where their economic policies are taking us;
– intend to deprive the country of affordable energy;
– support Ukraine, risking reprisals from Russia;
– fail to handle the huge burdens of servicing our national debt or stopping the boats or indeed the growing threat of too many foreigners on our shores who came her for handouts and have no intention of adopting British values;
– support DEI and LGBT values while releasing ever more criminals back onto our streets;
– continue with net-0 despite it being based on failed ideology alone.
Yes, it seems two tier everything is built into labour’s psyche.
August 19, 2026
Good at diverting our taxes away from the rightful owners to their preferred alternatives. Recently read that around £85million diverted from the ASF ( Adult Skills Fund ) meant to teach jobseekers to achieve qualifications such as Maths, GCSE or vocational course assistance but money being poured into ESOL ( English for Speakers of Other Languages ) Those authorities which apparently provided figures showed that almost £86m was spent on courses for 76.167 learners which taught foundational English skills. The DWP considers it “only right that that people who are here legally in this country can integrate into society and progress in work and contribute to the economy.” I tend to agree with Conservative Shadow Home Sec however when he said that money should be spent on getting people into work & is being spent on immigrants learning the basics of a language which they ought to speak already. He was right too to say we are being fleeced.
( Ref: Daily Tel 02/8/26 )
August 19, 2026
Tim Montgomerie suspended from Reform. Bad news for that party. Good news for those who see it as a threat.
However, Gavin Barwell has been denied a Conservative whip in the Lords and Grant Shapps is not getting another chance as a Conservative candidate.
Meanwhile, Burnham seems to be getting along by glad handing, smiling a lot and expressing concern. Nothing has yet hit the fan. Summertime and relief at Starmer’s disappearance perhaps ?
August 19, 2026
“Labour’s savage tax and regulatory attack on the private sector is having the predictable effect of closing things down or forcing cuts the public sector would never accept for itself.”
Yes, of course it’s entirely predictable and it’s the plan for socialism depends upon making and keeping people poor. It’s also a good way of increasing the number of people who work for, and become entirely dependent upon, the state. The Left’s Net Zero Trojan Horse also intentionally leads to millions of unproductive jobs dependent upon the state
August 19, 2026
The private sector is smaller than you think, you need to remember companies like Serco work exclusively on public sector contracts, their entire income comes from the public sector. And many similar companies have the majority of their income coming from the public sector. These companies show as “private sector” in the stats, they are not.
Around half of everything the country earns is spent by the public sector, inefficiently, wastefully, and in a condescending rationing style, oh yea “free” bus fares for the favoured demographics etc, and of course they also spend the ever increasing amounts they add onto the national debt which continues to increase our interest payments on that debt.
The public sector delivers sub third world healthcare, the justice system is worse than throwing dice as it is actively anti the majority of decent people, and pays for social housing originally built to support the workforces of mines, shipyards, steelworks which have long since shut and no other volume employers have emerged in those areas making them jobless wastelands with far too few jobs within travelling distance to sustain the people in those houses. We sustain social housing that would have long since shut if individuals had been allowed to move their housing subsidy closer to the emerging jobs market over time, like they would in a functioning market.
We have top down state rationing, allocation, and social engineering which all acts against decency and our ability to create wealth.
And of course our ruling classes flood the country with immigrants who displace locals from all parts of the skills spectrum in the jobs market.
A straw will break the camels back, I don’t know what the straw is, but this approach to running the country, and this ruling elite, cannot survive, there is no support from decent people, and there is no support from the markets which they rely on to keep topping up the national debt.
August 19, 2026
Agreed, the numbers simply show that current spending cannot be sustained, but politicians past and present do not want to be the ones who actually do something about it.
They talk a lot about austerity, but it is not austerity at all, it is simply sensible management and living within your means.
Increasing taxes further will simply discourage more to stop working, because there is no real point in doing so ion you are not going to benefit yourself and your family, so why bother.
August 19, 2026
Private enterprise devoured by the state, aka a socialist paradise.
August 19, 2026
When discussing economic policy two factors need to be borne in mind since we have socialism. Firstly, our unilateral de-industrialisation policy, known as the Net Zero Strategy, will not be enough to reduce our CO2 emissions to zero by 2050 as required by law since 2019, on its own. Consumption emissions will also need to be reduced and this requires high spending to justify high taxation and impoverishment. This goal will be more easily achieved by the mass immigration of people into the country whose cultures are not conducive to prosperity and hence CO2 emissions. Secondly we need to remember the long-term plans of our state. As Lord Gus O’Donnell who, when Cabinet Secretary, said in 2011: “When I was at the Treasury I argued for the most open door possible to immigration….. I think it’s my job to maximise global welfare not national.”