On Wednesday, it is expected that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will detail how the government intends to entice people back into work. There is a boost to the amount that people can save for their pensions before it is taxed, according to a measure that is expected to be announced.
He told the BBC's Today programme: There are more than 300,000 more vacancies than there were three years ago, so the labour market is pretty buoyant, which is surprising for many people. Business is really buoyant at the moment, he told the BBC. Everyone needs trades - they need people to do insulation work, they need people to do new builds, refurbish old buildings, replace cladding. There is so much work but there is not enough labour to go around, so that is what has driven the huge demand for adverts everywhere for all kinds of trades. Employment has risen again, but this time is driven by part-time and self-employed. Vacancies have fallen but they are still very high. Wages are growing in cash versus last year, but are still well below the inflation rate. There is evidence that pay growth is starting to stall on a month-to-month basis.
It was not enough to keep up with the cost of living. The average salary fell by 2.4% in the three months to January, compared to the same period last year when rising prices or inflation were taken into account.