Women’s groups and unions across the country express concerns that further cuts to public services in England may negatively impact gender equality. Groups including The Fawcett Society, the TUC, and Women’s Aid have communicated with the chancellor about the upcoming Spring Budget. They argue that 14 years of cuts to health, social care, early education and childcare, and services for survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence have already disproportionately affected women.

This feedback emerges amid increasing discussions about the upcoming Spring Budget. In late February, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) raised concerns about the robustness of Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s financial planning, suggesting it may face challenges in credibility. It calculated that, if plans to use a Whitehall spending freeze to fund pre-election incentives are pursued, Hunt needs to identify £35bn in cuts from public services already facing financial strain. Hunt faces suggestions from some members of his party to utilise the Spring Budget as a means to positively influence voter sentiment through tax cuts and growth-boosting measures. However, the IFS advised that Hunt should resist the urge to announce unfunded tax cuts, despite pressure from backbenchers.

A letter sent to Hunt concerning the impact of these cuts on women states that they are now seven times more likely than men to be out of the labour market due to caring responsibilities, with Black and minority ethnic women being 12 times more likely. The letter argues that reductions in childcare and early education services could potentially hinder progress towards gender equality.

Indeed, reductions in childcare funding have been ongoing for over a decade. This situation may disproportionately affect disadvantaged children and parents, as child-care providers in deprived areas, more reliant on government funding, struggle to stay in business. This creates a recruitment and retention crisis, significantly impacting disadvantaged mothers.

The letter also highlights that, despite increasing demand, services for survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence are being reduced in some areas. Charities note that most services they run are non-statutory, leading to concerns that councils might reduce funding for these services as part of budget-balancing efforts, given their non-statutory status. This comes as six local authorities have effectively declared themselves bankrupt since 2021.

The letter acknowledges the broader economic challenges facing local authorities and emphasises that: ‘At a time when our schools and hospitals are in disrepair and local authorities struggle to provide basic services, the government must prioritise funding our public services over tax cuts.’ This feedback coincides with a report indicating that the UK experienced the most significant annual decrease in PWC’s Women in Work index among OECD countries, dropping four places from 13th in 2021 to 17th in 2022, with the UK’s gender pay gap increasing from 14.3% in 2021 to 14.5% in 2022.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is set to announce the Spring Budget to Parliament on 6 March.

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