Nine in Ten Report Cost of Living Increase in Britain, as Quarter Struggle to Pay Bills

Nearly nine in ten members of the British public have reported an increase to their cost of living over the previous month, with about a quarter of adults struggling to make ends meet, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed.

The UK’s official statistician agency reported on Monday that 87 per cent of adults in the UK have felt the impact of the cost of living crisis in March, an increase of 25 per cent from February.

According to the figures compiled by the ONS, nearly one quarter (23 per cent) reported that it was very difficult or difficult to pay their standards bills compared to last year. The number of people struggling with their cost of living to such a degree has increased from 17 per cent in November of last year.

Fuel costs, which has been a major driver of the inflationary spiral impacting Britain and Europe, have been difficult to pay for 43 per cent of the public, the ONS said. The same proportion of Britons said that they will be unable to save any money over the next year.

Despite this, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has shot down calls for the government to scrap the taxes placed on household energy prices devoted towards investments into green energy schemes.

The government has tried to ameliorate anger from the public by announcing a 5 pence cut to the fuel duty and raised the limit on the national insurance threshold, however, this has apparently done little to help the bottom line amid soaring inflation.

Facing heightened political pressure in the run up to the local elections in May, Mr Johnson has called on his government to put forward “non-fiscal” ways to ease the growing financial burden on the public.

Though the government will not consider cutting taxes — despite promising to do so in the 2019 manifesto upon which the government was brought into power — the Tories are reportedly looking to increase public awareness of funds available for struggling low income families.

Johnson said that currently 1.3 million households in Britain have yet to take the government up on the offer of tax-free childcare, which is estimated to be worth about £2,000 per year. A further 850,000 households have also not claimed up to £3,300 in pension credit from the government.

“With household bills and living costs rising in the face of global challenges, easing the burden on the British people and growing our economy must be a team effort across Cabinet,” the PM said according to The Guardian.

“We have a strong package of financial support on offer, worth £22bn, and it’s up to all of us to make sure that help is reaching the hardest-hit and hard-working families across the country.

“We will continue to do all we can to support people without letting government spending and debt spiral, whilst continuing to help Brits to find good jobs and earn more, no matter where they live.”

In contrast, the left-wing Labour Party has actually backed a cut of the Value Added Tax (VAT) on energy and to scrap the national insurance hike. The traditionally high-tax party has, however, called for a “windfall” tax on oil and gas producers to subsidise energy bills for consumers to supposedly bring down prices.

The Conservative Party is also facing pressure from the political right in the country, with Reform UK leader Richard Tice warning that the government’s leftist Net Zero green agenda could backfire to the same level that befell previous Tory governments for opposing Brexit as the fuel crisis unfolds.

Follow Kurt Zindulka on Twitter here @KurtZindulka