In setting the Cost of Living Emergency in Harrow Motion at the council meeting this Thursday, the Labour group on the council has highlighted how Harrow and its residents are suffering due to a cost of living crisis:
In the light of the increased energy price cap by 54 per cent, the average standard tariff energy bill will increase by £600+ per year and the average pre-pay meter energy bills increasing by £700+ per year (Ofgem, 2022), they have pointed out.
Recently, the government increased National Insurance by 1.25%, which is projected to cost the average Harrow family an additional £108 per year.
In June this year, the UK inflation was confirmed at 9.1, the highest rate in 40 years.
The escalating cost of fuel is putting huge strain on local people simply trying to go about their everyday lives. As of 12 July, petrol is at an average of 190.65p per litre, while diesel is 198.42p per litre.
In some petrol stations, filling up a typical family car’s 55- litre fuel tank with petrol now costs £104.86 on average, while it costs £109.13 to do so with diesel.
The Government has suspended the pensions ‘triple lock’ for 2022/3, meaning that Harrow’s pensioners will see a rise of 3.1 per cent this year (instead of 8.3 per cent under
the triple lock formula). This year, this will cost a Harrow pensioner on the full new state pension an average of £487, and on the full basic state pension an average of £373 (TUC, 2022)
In 2021/22 Harrow foodbanks have handed out food parcels to thousands of residents on a weekly basis, many of whom are families with children. This continues to get worse.
The recent ‘Covid Additional Relief Fund’ (CARF) and ‘Household Support Fund’ (HSF) is just not adequate for the needs of Harrow families and businesses. Many will not even qualify for the schemes.
The proportion of people living in poverty in Harrow is 23%.
Very odd that while the Tory leadership candidates have clashed over cost of living during TV debates in a point-scoring, little mention of how the cost of living crisis that hit different groups of people differently, would be meaningfully addressed.
In the light of the increased energy price cap by 54 per cent, the average standard tariff energy bill will increase by £600+ per year and the average pre-pay meter energy bills increasing by £700+ per year (Ofgem, 2022), they have pointed out.
Recently, the government increased National Insurance by 1.25%, which is projected to cost the average Harrow family an additional £108 per year.
In June this year, the UK inflation was confirmed at 9.1, the highest rate in 40 years.
The escalating cost of fuel is putting huge strain on local people simply trying to go about their everyday lives. As of 12 July, petrol is at an average of 190.65p per litre, while diesel is 198.42p per litre.
In some petrol stations, filling up a typical family car’s 55- litre fuel tank with petrol now costs £104.86 on average, while it costs £109.13 to do so with diesel.
The Government has suspended the pensions ‘triple lock’ for 2022/3, meaning that Harrow’s pensioners will see a rise of 3.1 per cent this year (instead of 8.3 per cent under
the triple lock formula). This year, this will cost a Harrow pensioner on the full new state pension an average of £487, and on the full basic state pension an average of £373 (TUC, 2022)
In 2021/22 Harrow foodbanks have handed out food parcels to thousands of residents on a weekly basis, many of whom are families with children. This continues to get worse.
The recent ‘Covid Additional Relief Fund’ (CARF) and ‘Household Support Fund’ (HSF) is just not adequate for the needs of Harrow families and businesses. Many will not even qualify for the schemes.
The proportion of people living in poverty in Harrow is 23%.
Very odd that while the Tory leadership candidates have clashed over cost of living during TV debates in a point-scoring, little mention of how the cost of living crisis that hit different groups of people differently, would be meaningfully addressed.
Harrow Monitoring Group 