Demonstrators have gathered in Spain to protest against government’s spending cuts. The two main trade unions say they hope tens of thousands will rally in several cities including Madrid, from where Sarah Rainsford reports.

Usually sympathetic to the ruling Socialist Party, they are now bitterly opposed to its plan to raise the retirement age by two years to 67. So despite driving rain here, a stream of demonstrators has been making its way into central Madrid, where huge red banners declare the unions the protectors of Spanish pensions. The government argues the current system is unsustainable. In 40 years’ time, it's predicted there will be almost as many pensioners here as workers, but the unions insist later retirement should be an option only, not an obligation.