Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Britons skipping meals in cost of living crisis: poll

Half of UK households are cutting back on the number of meals, consumer group Which? said citing a survey of 3,000 people.

Britons skipping meals in cost of living crisis: poll

Millions of Britons are skipping meals in current the cost-of-living crisis, a consumer group warned Thursday, having already forecast that many risk fuel poverty after the UK curbed its energy price freeze.

The news came after data showed UK inflation jumped back above 10 percent in September on rampant food prices, as economic troubles pile up for beleaguered Conservative Prime Minister Liz Truss.


Half of UK households are cutting back on the number of meals, consumer group Which? said citing a survey of 3,000 people.

A similar proportion are finding it harder to eat healthily compared with before the crisis, while almost 80 percent are finding it difficult financially.

"The devastating impact of the cost-of-living crisis is, worryingly, leading to millions of people skipping meals or struggling to put healthy meals on the table," said Sue Davies, head of food policy at Which?.

Separately, the consumer group stated Wednesday that the UK government's decision this week to curb its energy price freeze would leave millions unable to adequately heat their homes.

In a series of humiliating budget U-turns, new finance minister Jeremy Hunt announced Monday that he would pull the plug on the flagship energy price freeze in April instead of late 2024.

"The government's decision to end universal energy support in April risks throwing millions of households across the country -- not just the most financially vulnerable -- into fuel poverty," warned Rocio Concha, head of policy and advocacy at Which?.

"The government must clarify how they will support those struggling to make ends meet beyond the spring and ensure that as energy prices remain incredibly high, consumers are not left out in the cold."

The price freeze was aimed at protecting consumers from sky-high domestic fuel costs, which have rocketed on key energy producer Russia's war on Ukraine.

Britain has meanwhile been blighted by strikes this year, as workers protest over wages that have failed to keep pace with runaway inflation.

The retail prices index -- an inflation measure which includes mortgage interest payments and is used by trade unions and employers when negotiating wage increases — leapt to 12.6 percent in September from 12.3 percent in August, data showed Wednesday.

Frances O'Grady, general secretary of umbrella grouping the Trades Union Congress (TUC), demanded this week that Truss step down.

"I have a message for Liz Truss: Working people are proud of the jobs we do. We work hard. We work the longest hours in Europe," she told the TUC's annual gathering in the English seaside resort of Brighton.

"Yet thanks to your party's 12 years in government, millions are struggling to make ends meet."

(AFP)

More For You

Air India flight crash

Debris of Air India flight 171 is pictured after it crashed in a residential area near the airport in Ahmedabad on June 13, 2025.

Getty Images

Leicester to observe silence for Air India crash victims during Rathayatra festival

A MINUTE of silence will be observed in Leicester on Sunday, June 22, to remember those who died in the recent Air India crash. The silence will take place during the inauguration of the annual Rathayatra festival of chariots in the city centre.

Organisers from the International Society for Krishna Consciousness confirmed the silence will be held at 11.20am, followed by traditional Hindu performances from Gujarat at Gallowtree Gate, outside Sports Direct.

Keep ReadingShow less
uk-energy-bill-iStock

The discount is funded and distributed by energy companies across England, Scotland and Wales, but the government decides who qualifies. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock)

Millions more to get £150 off energy bills under new Warm Home Discount rules

MILLIONS of households in Britain will receive £150 off their energy bills this winter after the government changed the eligibility rules for the Warm Home Discount.

People on means-tested benefits will now automatically qualify for the discount, regardless of their property's size or energy score. This change is expected to extend support to 2.7 million additional households, including nearly a million with children.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sisters drown in Snowdonia pools during trip with friends

Haleema Zahid

Sisters drown in Snowdonia pools during trip with friends

TWO sisters studying at the University of Chester have drowned in mountain pools while visiting Snowdonia with university friends, an inquest has heard.

Hajra Zahid, 29, and Haleema Zahid, 25, were pulled from the water at the Watkin Pools at Eryri in the Nant Gwynant area of Gwynedd on June 11.

Keep ReadingShow less
Croydon couple dies in Air India crash after baby shower trip

Vaibhav Patel and his wife Jinal Goswami

Croydon couple dies in Air India crash after baby shower trip

A YOUNG couple from Croydon were among those killed in last week's devastating Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, it has been confirmed.

Vaibhav Patel, 29, and his pregnant wife Jinal Goswami, 27, died when their flight crashed just moments after takeoff on June 12. Goswami was seven months pregnant with the couple's first child, reports said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Iran-Israel-clash-Reuters

Smoke rises following an Israeli attack in Tehran on June 18, 2025.

Reuters

Israel hits nuclear reactors in Iran; hospital struck in retaliation

ISRAEL launched airstrikes on key Iranian nuclear facilities on Thursday, while Iranian missiles damaged an Israeli hospital, escalating the ongoing conflict between the two countries.

Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would continue its campaign until Iran's nuclear programme is destroyed. “The tyrants of Tehran will pay the full price,” he said.

Keep ReadingShow less