Liz Truss performed a screeching U-turn today over a policy that had sparked fury from Red Wall Tories.
The Conservative leadership hopeful pledged to wage a “war on Whitehall waste” if she becomes prime minister, slashing public spending by up to £11 billion a year.
Her campaign said the bulk of the savings – some £8.8 billion – would come from paying workers living in cheaper areas of the country less than their counterparts in places like London and the South East, where the cost of living is higher.
By introducing “regional pay boards”, her team claimed, civil servants’ salaries could be adjusted in line with where they work.
