Cabinet ministers tell May to end austerity: Observer

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May is under pressure from her ministers to end the government's policy of economic austerity as a new poll shows her popularity has slumped, according to the Observer. Health minister Jeremy Hunt wants the government to drop a cap on public sector pay rises of a below-inflation 1 percent for nurses, while education minister Justine Greening wants more money for schools, according to the newspaper. Despite her party's expectations of a landslide victory, May lost her majority in parliament in last month's election, pushing her into a deal with a small eurosceptic Northern Irish Protestant party. The opposition Labour Party fared better than expected in last month's election with its promises of measures such as the end to a 1 percent cap on public sector pay increases. May's approval rating is now at minus 20 percentage points against a positive rating of 21 percentage points in April, according to a new Opinium survey for the Observer. British Agriculture Minister Michael Gove told the Sunday Times newspaper that the government should accept the findings of any future public sector pay reviews. ($1 = 0.7680 pounds) (Reporting By Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)