Buy Value Brands to Cope with Living Cost Crisis

In the UK, surging prices are contributing to the biggest squeeze on household incomes since at least the 1950s, putting pressure on the government to come up with support for the poorest, particularly those who cannot afford soaring energy bills. 

Already, food prices rose 7% across the UK economy in March, the biggest jump in three decades, according to a Bloomberg news report published April 27, 2022!  

The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (right) had attributed rising food prices to the knock-on effect of higher energy costs, pushing up fertiliser and feed costs. 

We know he'll blame it on disruptions brought about by the Russo-Ukrainian conflict as well as ongoing supply chain pressures. But we shouldn't allow him to forget that Brexit-related trade barriers played a significant part too.

And George Eustice had cleverly suggested that shoppers can deal with soaring food prices and cope with the cost-of-living crisis by choosing value brands in the supermarket. 

The Opposition were quick to jump at him.

Pat McFadden, Labour shadow Treasury minister, said Eustice’s comments were “woefully out of touch from a government with no solution to the cost-of-living crisis facing working people”. 

“People are seeing their wages fall, fuel and food costs rise, and families are worried about how to make ends meet”, he added. “It’s time for the government to get real help to people rather than comments that simply expose how little they understand about the real struggles people are facing to pay their bills”. 

The Liberal Democrat work and pensions spokesperson, Wendy Chamberlain, said: “These comments show George Eustice and the Conservatives are living in a parallel universe. Families and pensioners who can’t afford their weekly shop need more help, not patronising advice from a clueless minister. 

This is the stark reality of Boris Johnson’s Britain. Oil and gas giants are raking in billions, while families are told to buy value food and pensioners are riding around on buses to keep warm”. 

And then, we have PM Boris Johnson (right) saying on Tuesday the government could not help everyone through the current cost-of-living crisis and had to remain prudent with its spending! 

But yet his government on Monday had generously pledged to give £300 million ($375 million) more in military aid to Ukraine, on top of around £200 million ($300 million) of assistance so far! 

BoJo obviously cares more about Ukrainians than his fellow citizens who are already suffering during these hard times! 

And it is really about showing to the world that he is proud to be a lapdog of the US.