We need to support people as the cost of living soars

We have all heard about the impending not-so-perfect storm of price rises and cuts that will hit hard this winter.

By the autumn, living costs could have risen by 14 per cent for low-income families while the support they receive has only risen by 3 per cent.

Families with two children will face a shortfall of at least £1,600 – a staggering sum of money that many families just don’t have.

Much of this inflation is associated with the skyrocketing energy bills faced by households.

I have been listening to residents – pensioners, families and young single people – who are very worried about how they’ll get through the winter for the first time ever in their lives.

This is a national economic emergency but the Conservative government is putting the profits of oil and gas giants before people.

However, Labour has a £29 billion plan to stop bills going up, typically saving households £1,000 this winter and paid for by taxing oil and gas companies who are making bumper profits of nearly £50 billion.

This will bring inflation down by 4 per cent, making interest rate rises less likely and easing worries for households and businesses.

Labour would make sure bills come down in the long term too by investing in more sustainable British energy sources, meaning that we don’t have to rely on expensive fossil fuels.

Labour’s “Warm Homes Plan” will also insulate millions more homes to reduce the amount of energy we use and save more money.

The Conservatives have lost control of the economy and working people are paying the price.

We’ve had 12 years of Tory government that has failed to secure our energy supplies, leaving bills higher and our country less secure.

Labour’s fully funded plan would stop bills rising now and create sustainable energy for the future – helping people get through the winter while providing the foundations for a more secure economy.

Labour councillors in our city also know we need to do all we can locally to support residents through this crisis.

Brighton and Hove City Council worked effectively with other services such as our NHS and voluntary and community organisations to co-ordinate a great response during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. We need to do the same now.

This is why Labour is calling on the leader of the council, Councillor Phélim Mac Cafferty, to get organised – and for the council to do all it can to ensure no one in our city suffers hypothermia or goes hungry.

Councillor John Allcock is the joint Labour opposition leader on Brighton and Hove City Council.