NORTH-EAST workers’ are enduring living standards comparable to Queen Victoria’s era, a senior union figure has claimed.

People have been failed by the Government, says Frances O’Grady, who has warned immediate investment is needed to deliver highly-skilled jobs and affordable housing.

Ms O’Grady, the TUC's general secretary, has also accused Prime Minister David Cameron on laying the most severe council cuts upon the region, which she says is forcing it to exist in a parallel universe.

Speaking at a conference in Gateshead this weekend (Saturday, April 11 and Sunday, April 12), she will tell delegates workers are not part of Mr Cameron’s long-term economic plan.

She said: “The North-East has been one of the areas hardest hit by austerity.

“Workers have endured the longest squeeze on living standards since Queen Victoria sat on the throne.

“Average pay in the region is more than £1,500 a year lower than it was in 2010.

“Even with inflation hitting record lows, the result of falling oil prices rather than Government action, it is likely to take years for wages to recover to their pre-recession levels.

“While hard-working families have seen their pay tumble, City directors have seen their pay skyrocket.

“That’s why it’s essential we invest in more high-skilled, high wage jobs, because we can’t build a lasting recovery on the back of zero-hours contracts.”

Ms O’Grady’s comments come as Mr Cameron continues the Conservative Party’s General Election campaign, with the Prime Minister saying the Tories have helped 1.75 million people into work and cut income tax for more than 25 million people since the last poll.

However, Ms O’Grady said those figures mean nothing for the North-East, referring to comments made by Councillor Nick Forbes, leader of Newcastle City Council, who said Mr Cameron was living in a parallel universe.

She said: “Public services throughout the region have been cut to the bone, yet David Cameron has some brass neck to claim local authorities can find yet more efficiencies.

“The leader of Newcastle Council was right.

“The Prime Minister should visit the communities devastated by his cuts before making such claims.”

Ms O’Grady also said Chancellor George Osborne’s Help To Buy plan was not doing enough for the region’s housing market.

She added: “There are also no areas left in the North-East where house prices are less than four times the average salary.

“A generation of young people face the prospect of never owning their own home.

“The Chancellor would like us to believe Help To Buy is a silver bullet for dealing with our housing problems, but it’s not.

“It has done little to arrest the sell-off of social housing stock with only one home replaced for every ten sold off; its main achievement has been to push house prices up.”