TRADE unionists have demanded that Chancellor Rachel Reeves deliver a living standards Budget for Wales, to meet the needs of workers and families.

TUC Cymru called on Ms Reeves to ensure that improved funding for public services, full delivery of the Employment Rights Bill legislation, help with energy costs and measures to tackle child poverty are at the heart of tomorrow’s Budget.

TUC Cymru general secretary Shavanah Taj said: “This Budget must show that working people in Wales matter.

“After years of cuts and crises, families across our nation need real and tangible support, not warm words and not half measures.

“Our public services are stretched to breaking point, workers are exhausted and too many households are choosing between heating and eating and this is simply not acceptable in a modern and fair-minded country.”

The Welsh trade unions’ priorities for the Chancellor’s Budget are to protect and invest in public services in Wales and bring down energy costs, especially for rural and low income households.

TUC Cymru also want support for Wales to reduce child poverty — including action on the UK two-child benefit cap — tackle poverty across society and reduce the cost of living by ensuring wages grow faster than prices.

“The Chancellor must deliver a Budget that puts living standards first,” Ms Taj said.

“That means investing properly in public services, bringing down energy bills, tackling child poverty head on and delivering the Employment Rights Bill in full. Working people in Wales deserve nothing less.”

TUC polling shows that 83 per cent of the public agree that no child should live in poverty, but Wales continues to have the highest child poverty rates with nearly one in three children affected.

The Welsh trade union body said that for many public service workers, who form the backbone of Welsh public life, real wages are no higher than they were 17 years ago.

TUC Cymru called this a Tory pay hangover which continues to hit Wales, where public services are under immense strain and too many households still struggle to make ends meet.

The trade unions said the Chancellor has a generational opportunity this week to reverse the tide and ensure that working families in Wales are not condemned to another decade of hardship.