It's the start of the summer holidays; a time when families expect to take a deserved break and enjoy themselves. But in Tory Britain, years of crippling austerity cuts, zero-hour contracts, low pay and high rents have driven millions to use food banks in order to put a meal on the table.

In fact for low-income families who have to claim free school meals for the children, the summer holiday is no longer a time to look forward to because they cannot guarantee a daily square meal for their kids.

And because of Chancellor George Osborne's latest budget, low income families will be further hammered by an extra £12 billion-worth of welfare cuts.

13 million families will lose hundreds of pounds a year because of cuts in working tax credits. And because of cuts in Universal Credit, three million households will lose an average of £1,000 a year... and the list of cuts goes on.

But at the same time the super-rich backers of the Tories continue to accumulate wealth. This year the 1,000 richest families in the UK amassed £547 billion, up £28 billion on last year's total. No problem here buying a fish and chips supper!

The Tories claim their policies will lead to a booming economy and opportunities galore for people to climb the social ladder.

But how can school students study hard for a decent education when their stomachs are empty? How can families afford to send their children to university when the government takes away their grants and makes them pay £9,000 a year tuition fees?

We have to build a mass anti-austerity movement that can roll back the Tories' cuts. That includes the trade union movement coordinating action, including a 24-hour general strike in an opening salvo against the government.

But we also need a political alternative to this crisis-ridden, class-divided capitalist system.

Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party leadership challenge has shown the popularity of anti-austerity ideas. But Labour is still dominated by supporters of welfare cuts. Indeed, only 20% of Labour MPs actually opposed Osborne's budget.

We need a mass, working class, socialist alternative. Join the Socialist Party now to help build it!

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Finance appeal

The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.

The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.

The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.

The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.

Inevitably, during the crisis we have not been able to sell the Socialist and raise funds in the ways we normally would.

We therefore urgently appeal to all our viewers to donate to our Fighting Fund.