Leading North East Conservatives have hit out at comments made by Tory leadership contender Liz Truss suggesting public sector workers in areas like the North East should be paid less than their southern counterparts.
Ms Truss has since u-turned on the proposals, which would have seen an end to national pay deals for civil servants and instead linking them to living standards where they live.
If rolled out across other public sectors, it could have saved £8.8 billion a year - but just a few hours after the potential policy was outlined, Ms Truss' campaign insisted there had been “wilful misrepresentation” of the public sector pay cut plan.
