That this House notes the continuing downward pressure on household budgets across the United Kingdom, with many families facing rising prices for essential goods and services; further notes the risk that the cost of living crisis may intensify as a consequence of war in the Middle East and its potential impact on global energy and commodity prices; supports the resistance of working people to declining living standards and the erosion of pay and conditions; expresses its solidarity with all workers taking industrial action in defence of their living standards, including the Birmingham bin workers who have been on strike for a year following restructuring proposals by Birmingham City Council, which could lead to significant pay reductions for some staff, as well as workers at the National Coal Mining Museum in Wakefield who are striking in response to an unfair pay settlement; recognises that both groups of workers face unjust reductions in their living standards and intransigent management responses; urges the Government to intervene urgently in both disputes to help secure fair resolution; and calls on the government to pursue a new economic settlement for Britain that delivers social justice for working people.
