Britain’s annual inflation rate fell more than expected in November after hitting a 41-year high in October, giving Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government a breather amid widespread union action, Reuters and Agerpres reported.

Annual inflation fell to 10.7% in November from 11.1% in October, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, while economists polled by Reuters had expected a decline of 10.9%.

Inflation in the Eurozone and the US was lower than expected in November.

“Prices are still rising but less than in the same period in 2021, the most important example being fuel,” said ONS chief economist Grant Fitzner.

Most economists expect the Bank of England to raise interest rates to 3.5% from 3% on Thursday, although BoE forecasts point to a prolonged recession for the British economy. The annual inflation rate in the UK is higher than in the US and the Eurozone.

The most significant increase in prices was recorded in the food and energy sectors, which had the greatest impact on the population with low incomes.

In November, food and drinks cost 16.4% more than in the same period in 2021, the biggest increase since 1977.

Core inflation, which remains after stripping out prices of volatile goods such as energy and food, fell to 6.3% in November from 6.5% in October.

UK union wave over cost of living crisis

The figures, released by the ONS, come a day before UK nurses are set to strike after talks between unions and new prime minister Rishi Sunak’s government broke down over pay rises for NHS staff, Britain’s public health system.

This week’s nurses’ strike is putting fresh pressure on Sunak to contain the biggest wave of protest action to hit Britain in decades.

The nurses’ action comes after other strikes have paralyzed rail transport and the postal system, and airports are bracing for similar disruptions. Residents, midwives and teachers will also vote next term on whether to go on strike, threatening an economy already in recession with further turbulence.

Unions are demanding a double-digit wage increase for incomes to keep up with inflation, which hit 11.1% in October.

But London’s Conservative government has so far refused to give in to union demands, instead considering tougher legislation to stop some strikes, meaning there is no immediate prospect of ending what some analysts are calling a new “winter of discontent” in reference to the mass union action that has swept Britain in 1978-1979 years.

Strikes will take place across Britain every day this month and unions estimate more than a million working days will be lost in December, the worst disruption since July 1989.