The UK public sector has swelled to its largest size in over a decade, even as the wider economy struggles with a hiring slowdown. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show almost 6.2 million people now work in the public sector – the highest since 2011 and up 75,000 in the past year. Economists warn that the combination of a growing public payroll and persistently low productivity leaves Reeves with little choice but to tighten the tax burden, already heading towards a post-war high. Despite employing nearly 600,000 more people since the pandemic, the public sector is delivering less. Andrew Goodwin, chief UK economist at Oxford Economics, said: “If we’re thinking about how the public finances are put back on an even keel, it is imperative the government improves public sector productivity.