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Maggie's ghost still rules UK

British government cuts funding for agency that protects workers

The Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS), the British government agency responsible for protecting workers from being exploited by their employers, has had more than 50 percent of its funding cut since the Conservative party came to power.

EAS “works with agencies, employers and workers to make sure that employment rights are complied with, particularly for vulnerable workers.”

Britain’s opposition Labour Party has called on Prime Minister Theresa May to take action, urging her to restore the EAS to its former size. The Labour party says that the EAS’ budget has been slashed down to just £500,000 a year, which represents a cut of 53 percent in just six years. It also has just had its staff force cut down by 70 percent.

During her short campaign to be the prime minister, May delivered a speech in which she promised to crack down on “irresponsible behavior in big business."

However, British lawmaker Ian Lavery has criticized the government for its “unwillingness to stand up for working people.” He added that “the government is leaving too many workers at the whim of unscrupulous employers.”

UK Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, has been a staunch critic of the Tory party’s policies, saying once in an interview, “we have attacked this Budget for what it is -- at the very core of it is unfairness and injustice within our society. That is what the Tory Party is about.” He says that in his party they “have stood up to try to defend the worst off in society, the most vulnerable in society.”

Britain’s former coalition government, led by the Conservatives, launched crippling austerity measures, including welfare cuts, when it came to power in 2010 in a bid to tackle the country’s mounting debt and sluggish growth following the 2009 financial crisis in Europe.

The current UK Tory government is pushing ahead with its austerity agenda since it came to power last May despite public protests against controversial cuts in recent years.

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