Our reaction to the Government's new cost of living measures

Our Executive Director, Anna Taylor, reacts to the Chancellor’s Cost of Living announcement:

"Today’s announcement finally provides some much-needed relief for vulnerable households across the UK who have been acutely struggling with rising prices – visiting food banks, missing meals, and going without other essentials.

It is the right choice to focus support on those households least able to weather the storm.

Whilst we strongly welcome the additional support for households on benefits and those with disabilities, it is disappointing not to see stronger protections also being put in place for households with children. These households are at high risk of food insecurity, and will proportionally benefit less from the one-off payments announced today.  

Investment in Free School Meals would help to safeguard the quality of children’s diets through the crisis, shoring-up their long-term health and development.”

Our recent research showed that food insecurity levels have increased by 57% since January, with one in five households with children experiencing food insecurity in the past six months.  

Immediate support was needed.  

This is a large, welcome package of measures that will largely offset the rise in energy bills this year, but we know that other bills are quickly rising too. Food prices have risen 6.7% since April 2021, and as food budgets are squeezed households are being forced to choose cheaper, less healthy foods.

Food insecurity is a long-term problem, and levels have been high since pre-Covid. If we are to prevent levels deteriorating again, and indeed start to address the long-term problem that keeps underlying food insecurity levels high, more ambition will be needed as we head into the Autumn and Winter.