As speculation mounts over what British finance minister Rachel Reeves might include in her upcoming tax and spending plan this month, one thing seems certain—she will emphasize that it’s
for the benefit of "working people."
This phrase, "working people," has been repeatedly used by both Reeves and Prime Minister Keir Starmer in the lead-up to the October 30 budget announcement. Their aim is to reassure the majority of voters that they won’t bear the brunt of the potential tax increases expected in the new fiscal plan.
At a recent Labour Party conference, Starmer mentioned "working people" 16 times during his speech but did not clarify precisely who he was referring to. The ambiguity surrounding this term isn’t new, as similar vague language has long been part of British political discourse.
Former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair and his finance minister, Gordon Brown, frequently referenced "hard-working families" to distance the party from perceptions of being too focused on welfare. Likewise, back in 2015, Reeves described Labour as the party of "working people," stressing that the party was not aligned with those relying on benefits.
Alan Finlayson, a professor of political and social theory at the University of East Anglia, pointed out that politicians today are aware that they no longer closely resemble the people they claim to represent. Labour, in particular, no longer positions itself as the party of the working class, as that notion feels outdated.
Finlayson noted, "How do you speak to everyone when no one knows who you're really representing? The terms 'working people' and 'hard-working families' are just vague enough to avoid controversy, but also too vague to inspire much enthusiasm."
In the mid-2010s, British political rhetoric turned to the "JAMs" – households "just about managing," a term popularized by Conservative leader Theresa May when she was Prime Minister. The think tank Resolution Foundation helped define JAMs as six million working-age households with low to middle incomes.
Today, Starmer and Reeves’ focus on "working people" seems intended to reassure voters that the burden of any tax increases will be placed on the wealthy. Before the election, Labour promised not to raise income tax, value-added tax (VAT), or social security contributions—the major sources of government revenue. This pledge leaves the new government with the difficult task of finding alternative ways to fund public service improvements and infrastructure investments.
This week, both Reeves and Starmer avoided ruling out the possibility of increasing employers' social security contributions, sparking criticism from the Conservative opposition. The Tories accused Labour of breaking their campaign promises, but Labour responded by reiterating that they had pledged to protect "working people" from tax hikes, not businesses.
Finlayson observed that the linguistic focus of the new government reflects where its priorities lie. He said, "This fits with Labour's tradition, particularly from the era of Gordon Brown, where work has moral significance and is seen as the backbone of the nation." Photo by Lauren Hurley / No 10 Downing Street, Wikimedia commons.