The Cost Of Living Crisis

By Ethan Branigan

Economic change has quickly shifted the landscape again through what many believe to be poor politics, and leading us into a cost of living crisis. Affecting numerous households throughout the UK, energy prices have soared as  protests have been sparked and the debate of unaffordability has now caught fire.  This is especially prominent to the working class of our society. The Guardian Newspaper  has talked of ‘cooking up solutions’ an interesting metaphor when many families cannot afford to eat.

The current crisis first occurred with so-called ‘higher expenditure’ due to increased prices. Increased government expenditure, based on higher borrowing has contributed to subsequent increases in inflation. This affects  the income of families which, over a period of time has remained stagnant. This has caused a national outcry, with a 9.9% increase in inflation and 89% of adults in the UK reporting an unsustainable change to their cost of living,  causing psychologicl distress and affecting mental health. 

In our Oldham community food banks are acting as a prominent factor with numbers increasing through local charity promotion, to encourage those who are struggling to be helped. Numbers have increased with over 8,000 local people calling in because of emergency living circumstances. This crisis has definitely seen an impact on the vulnerable of society; of those who are older, pensioners who live on their own and working class families.