[woodcote]

Not wanting facts to get in the way of a good rant  

But, this Office for National Statistics report on average weekly earnings is worth looking at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabo...n/july2019

It shows private sector wage growth to have been higher than the public sector for all but one month between June 2018 and May 2019. However, that is driven by high growth in construction and the financial sector, as opposed to low growth in manufacturing and the retail/hospitality sector. The one month public sector pay rose more rapidly was due to NHS pay rises paid one month earlier than in 2018.

There's also this: https://fullfact.org/economy/how-have-wages-changed/ - which looks at how wages have changed in real terms (ie compared to inflation) over the past decade (to November 2018). It also shows that the public sector has seen lower growth over the decade, but the private sector has seen more wage volatility - wage growth in the private sector has only caught up and overtaken the public sector in the past four years. There is no consideration of variation between different parts of the private sector.

However, this graph suggests most of us are right to feel our wages still pay for less than before the recession...



As for #6 - I'm all for seeing more minority interests - like slot cars - in the media. And #7 the BBC is definitely biased - we should start a campaign for more slot car coverage on all their platforms