Rebecca McDonald, Chief Economist at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, responded to new inflation figures published by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) today
Inflation, which has risen to 10.1% today, is eating away at people's pay and leaving millions adrift in a cost of living crisis. No one can disagree this is a national emergency. Today's sobering reading means the next few months will be profoundly more difficult for low income families, almost certainly experiencing a higher degree of inflation themselves.
People are looking for a sign that help is on the way. Yet the government doesn't seem to have grasped the full scale and urgency of this situation.
"Energy bills for low-income households are expected to be 1,800 higher this year than last, and other costs such as food are expected to rise by 1,000 at the same period. That's why JRF and 70 other charities called on the UK's next Prime Minister to pledge that the 1,200 in core support to households on means-tested benefits should be at least doubled.
It's not just rising energy bills that are squeezing low-income families. Food prices have risen by 12.6% over the last year. So while today's double digit analysis may come as a shock, it's no surprise to people who can't afford the same essentials they could a year ago.
Planning for a substantial support package, at least double what's been offered, needs to start immediately. Without one, vulnerable people will face a catastrophe on a vast scale when winter sets in.