Martin Lewis believes the UK is in the midst of the worst cost of living crisis he has seen in 22 years, and says that it could be ‘catastrophic’ for those struggling to make ends meet. You can see the thoughts of the Money Saving Expert founder below.
Martin Lewis is widely known and highly regarded for his advice to consumers and customers on how best to use their cash.
However, speaking on TV this morning, 20 March, he cut a more sombre tone, explaining how he is pretty much out of ideas when it comes to keeping people above water with their finances.
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Of course, we all know that fuel prices and energy prices are currently skyrocketing, and the general cost of living is heading upwards at an alarming rate.
There are lots of reasons for this, but Lewis believes the only way the spike can be stopped is for the government to do something about it.
Speaking on BBC programme Sunday Morning, Lewis lamented the rising prices and said he’s ‘virtually out of tools’ to help people make their money go further.
He said: “I’ve been Money Saving Expert since 2000. I’ve been through the financial crash, I’ve been through Covid which was mitigated by some of the measures the Chancellor put in place.
“This is the worst – where we are right now, this is the worst.”
He continued: “When I’m reading messages from people saying money prioritisation used to be ‘do I go to the hairdressers, or do I go to the pub and have a takeaway’.
“Now it’s about prioritising ‘feeding my children over feeding myself’. That is simply not tenable in our society and there is absolute panic – and it has not started yet.”
Addressing the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak directly, he said: “As the Money Saving Expert who’s been known for this – I am virtually out of tools to help people now.
“It’s not something money management can fix. It’s not something for those in the lowest incomes, telling them to cut their bills will work. We need political intervention.”
Sunak is set to deliver a Spring Statement on the UK’s finances on Wednesday, 23 March, but isn’t expected to announce any big changes to his policies.
Speaking this morning on Sky News, Sunak blamed some of the crisis on the current situation in Ukraine.
He said: "The fundamentals of our economy are really good because we've recovered well, because of the actions we've taken, but look, the outlook is uncertain... because of what's happening in Ukraine."
When pressed about comments from his fellow Conservative MP Robert Halfon, who said it was ‘vital’ the government cut fuel duty, Sunak said: "Obviously I can't comment on specific things.
“But what I would say, I understand that, I have a rural constituency, people are incredibly reliant on their cars and this is one of the biggest bills that people face, watching it go up, right, we're all seeing that, when we're filling up our cars.
"I get that, that's why we've frozen fuel duty already, I announced that in autumn, it's the 11th consecutive year of fuel duty freezes and that really helps people, I know that."
Topics: Money, Martin Lewis, UK News, Politics, Rishi Sunak, Cars
Tom Wood