Andy Burnham's first Budget in power must be a turning point for Britain, one of Labour's most influential union backers has insisted.
Sharon Graham, the Unite General Secretary, said it was time for governments to stop reaching for the "lever of the working-class pocket" while refusing to hike taxes on the richest 1%.
Unite demands cost-of-living measures
Describing Wednesday's high-stakes Budget as "Andy Burnham's first real test", Ms Graham said there must be immediate measures to ease the cost-of-living, including ending the "stealth tax" threshold freeze.
The threshold has been frozen at £12,570 since 2021, meaning more and more low-income workers are dragged into paying income tax as earnings increase.
Unite union is also demanding a cut to household energy bills at Wednesday's Budget.
They claim their proposals - paid for by extra taxes on the super-rich, a hike in the banks' surcharge, and a levy on excessive energy profits - would put £700-per-year back into the pockets of most families.
Graham: 'This Budget must be a turning point'
Writing for The Mirror today, Ms Graham said: "Pandering to the "free market", to the super-rich and profiteers, has hit the working-class in the pocket, and robbed them of the aspiration of a better future.
"This Budget must be a turning point. It's time to take a different path. It's time to stop reaching for the lever of the working-class pocket. Who pays in the Burnham Budget? We shall see."
It comes as Chancellor John Healey, the former Defence Secretary, prepares to deliver his crunch Budget on Wednesday in a major moment for Burnham's new government.
Cabinet and economists weigh in
On Sunday, top Cabinet minister Angela Rayner refused to be drawn on the details.
But the Housing Secretary, whose department is expected to be in line for a £1billion boost for council housing, told Sky News: "What the Chancellor has been really clear on as we go into this Budget is that people need breathing space and so do British businesses."
Earlier this week the former Bank of England chief economist and ally of the PM, Andy Haldane, told The Times he feared the government would deliver a "mañana budget" and delay tricky decisions.
But Ms Rayner said: "What Andy also said very clearly was the way in which the previous government acted was an act of vandalism on our economy. And I agree with him on that. We inherited a really terrible situation."
Bank surcharge and tax plans
This week the Chancellor is expected to hike the surcharge on banks' bumper profits in order to give low-income people breathing space on the cost of living.
The move will be welcomed by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) which has been campaigning for banks "to pay a fairer share" since Mr Burnham entered No10.
It comes as high street banks are expected to unveil stronger profits, with Lloyds Banking Group, HSBC, NatWest Group and Santander set to report their third-quarter financial results this week.
But Mr Healey is said to have ruled out higher taxes on wealth, including hiking capital gains tax, which applies to the profit made from selling off assets like a house or shares.
Reactions from campaigners and former chancellor
Neal Lawson, the director of campaign group Compass who has known Mr Burnham for decades, also told Sky News: "He promised something very different from Keir Starmer.
"And if he doesn't deliver eventually something very different from Keir Starmer then he's going to be in trouble."
He added: "He's got to do big things. I think he should be looking to tax wealth, looking for rent controls. I think he should be looking to take water into public ownership - the things that he promised in his run-up to the leadership."
Appearing on the BBC, ex-Tory Chancellor Jeremy Hunt also provided a glimpse behind-the-scenes of No11 in the build-up to the crucial moment. He said the weekend before the Budget was the "calm before the storm".
He added: "It's a slightly surreal feeling as all the decisions have been made. Most Chancellors use today to write their speech and think about all those cringey dad jokes they are going to squeeze in at various moments. Then you have the Budget speech itself and the 24 hours that follow is when you really know whether it's landed - or whether it's going to unravel."
