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British Prime Minister Johnson: Fierce criticism of layoff plans
Photo: Oli Scarff / dpa
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to cut 91,000 public sector jobs over the next few years, freeing up billions to fight rising living costs.
This would eliminate about one in five of the current 475,000 full-time positions in the so-called civil service.
"We need to lower government costs to lower the cost of living," Johnson told the Daily Mail newspaper.
He hinted at tax cuts.
"Every pound the government doesn't take from taxpayers is money they can spend on their own priorities, on their own lives." The move is expected to save the equivalent of 4.1 billion euros a year.
Unions reacted outraged, but cabinet member Jacob Rees-Mogg defended the move on Friday.
In order to combat the consequences of Brexit and the corona pandemic, additional positions were created that are no longer needed.
In some ministries, the number of government officials has doubled in recent years, Rees-Mogg told Sky News.
The hard cut only means a return to the level of 2016, when the majority of the British voted to leave the EU.
In the future, staff should be used more effectively again.
Critics accuse Johnson's government of doing far too little to relieve consumers in view of the rampant inflation.
Experts warn millions could slide into debt and poverty as a result of skyrocketing energy and food costs.
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