SOS for Britain: Soaring cost of living could push 3m people into absolute poverty

The experts’ concern about the poverty afflicting Britain as revealed by two new investigations which saw the light of day on Thursday (1/9). As highlighted in them “The soaring cost of living could push 3 million people into absolute poverty»,

“Energy poverty in Britain will cause a ‘humanitarian crisis’ affecting millions of children” emphasize the experts.

“Homes are underheated, stress on struggling households is high, children in Britain are exposed to humanitarian, social and educational risks,” the report by the Institute of Health Equity (IHE), a research institute on inequalities in health.

“This kind of environment means that thousands of people will die earlier than they should and, in addition to lung damage in children (in cold homes), toxic stress can permanently affect their brain development,” summarizes Michael Marmot, the director of this institute, in a statement he issued as reported by the Athens News Agency. News.

Fears of a major humanitarian crisis

Unless there is substantial government intervention, the institute expresses concerns about a “big humanitarian crisis» which will lead to more than half of households in Britain in energy poverty by January.

Regulated energy prices will rise by 80% from October in Britainwhich is expected to push inflation above 13% by the end of the year, or more, while gas and electricity bills may rise further next year.

Real household disposable income (that is, adjusted for inflation) is set to fall by 10% overall over this year and next, in the biggest fall in living standards for a century, according to the think tank Resolution Foundation.

This equates to around £3,000 less per year for the average household and “the crisis in living standards will extend well beyond this winter, into next year and into 2024”, adds the Resolution Foundation in a study released today to publicity.

“The number of people living in absolute poverty will rise by 3 million to 14 million in total,” according to the Resolution Foundation, which notes that a boost of tens of billions of pounds from the next government is inevitable (his successor of Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be announced on Monday).

Winter is bleak

“These worrying figures point to the growing difficulties of the British economy,” said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Suzanne Streeter, adding that the prospect of “such a bleak winter pushed sterling to a new pre-pandemic low against the dollar today.” .

The front-runner in the British prime minister race, Liz Truss, has so far come out in favor of tax cuts, arguing that direct payments are just a “band-aid”.

However, Trass assured The Sun today that if she becomes prime minister she will “offer immediate support so that people are not faced with unaffordable energy bills”.