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The devastating impact of ten years of Tory cuts on communities across the country has been laid bare.

A damning audit shows how thousands of children’s and youth centres, libraries, council-subsidised bus routes and public toilets have been shut since the Conservatives came to power.

The Unison analysis, from freedom of information requests to 330 councils, reveals that 859 children’s centres and 940 youth centres have been closed since 2010.

More than a fifth of public toilets, 835, have been shut, while council-subsidised bus routes have fallen by almost a third - a reduction of 1,224 services, many in isolated rural services.

More than one in five libraries have either closed, been privatised or are now staffed by volunteers - a decrease of 738 council-run libraries.

Unison boss Dave Prentis said public services had been “torn apart” by Tory austerity and warned it would continue if Boris Johnson wins power.

(Image: FACUNDO ARRIZABALAGA/EPA-EFE/REX)

He said the Tories could not be trusted to deliver on their promises for public services - especially the NHS.

He added: “The Tories are saying they’re not going to increase borrowing, they’re not going to increase taxation, but we’re going to move to a land of milk and honey.

“It’s a pipe dream. Our public services have been neglected to such an extent that it’s going to take ten years at least to get them back up to where they were in 2010.

“Every Tory administration there’s been cut-backs in NHS real spending. There is no reason to believe that they have changed their coat.”

Central government cuts have led to a 17% fall in council spending on local services in England since 2010.

Grant funding for councils in England has fallen by £16billion and there have also been significant cuts for councils in Wales and Scotland.

Mr Prentis predicted that many Labour supporters, even those who voted Leave, would be voting on the basis of issues other than Brexit .

He claimed there had been a “massive push-down” on working standards with 750,000 decent jobs gone as a result of austerity.

“They’ve gone through reorganisations, privatisation, redundancies, they see decent work going off a cliff and they worry about their families,” he said.

He dismissed the Tories’ response to the problems facing the NHS, schools, social care and the police which have been starved of cash.

“They think if they wear an NHS badge they can solve all the problems of the NHS when the reality is a lot different to that,” he said.

“They’re into glib answers that can’t stand the test of time. It will take money. This cannot be done on the cheap.”

(Image: Dan Kitwood)

He rubbished the Tory leader’s ‘Get Brexit Done’ slogan, saying it was “a con” to suggest a trade deal could be completed by December 2020.

He warned that US multinationals were already “waiting in the wings” to take over delivery of health, local government and care services.

“The American negotiators are very powerful, it’s what they insist on it’s not what we say no to,” he said.“We know from all of the trade agreements there has always been the demand for opening up public services across the board to competition”.

The Unison general secretary, who wanted Labour to unequivocally back Remain in a confirmatory vote, said he still believed Brexit would damage jobs and public services.

“We don’t believe that any deal that can be reached can be in the interests of the public services or workers in this country,” he said.

But he believes his members don’t believe “we should be coming out heavily on Brexit”.

He added: “They can see the sense in a second referendum because it’s democracy at work.”

The general secretary said he would not be “instructing” his union’s 1.3m members how to vote.

(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

He claimed they would “see through some of the things they’re hearing” from Mr Johnson which were more “rhetoric than reality”.

He added: “If the Tories get back there will be future years of austerity on their proposals. Austerity will not end.”

Mr Prentis defended Jeremy Corbyn ’s leadership: “Jeremy has been much maligned by the media. It’s been directed from No 10.

“You will get a reaction on the doorstep from some people. It’s natural, this has been a weapon that has been devised very carefully and it’s one we have to tackle. We would say to voters you’re electing a Parliament, you’re electing a Government”.