Prime Minister Keir Starmer has asserted that government measures are effectively addressing the rising cost of living, even as businesses and charities issue warnings about new financial pressures on households and companies. Speaking after chairing a Cobra meeting yesterday on the Gulf energy crisis and its potential impact on British households, the Prime Minister highlighted several initiatives. He indicated that the average household's energy bills had been reduced by £117 annually. Furthermore, Starmer pointed to increases in both the national minimum wage and the national living wage. He also mentioned the launch of a £1 billion fund aimed at assisting vulnerable households with high heating oil costs, along with a freeze on prescription prices.

Starmer stressed that the most effective long-term solution to mitigate living costs involves de-escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, specifically referencing the situation in Iran and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. He stated that it was his government's duty to protect British citizens "in an uncertain and volatile world," connecting geopolitical stability directly to domestic economic well-being. He added that while millions would see energy bills go down and wages rise due to government decisions, further action, particularly de-escalation in the Middle East, was crucial for sustained cost reduction.

However, charity organizations have cautioned that escalating costs for council tax, water, broadband, and mobile phone services, set to increase from today, threaten to financially strain many households to their limits. Separately, the trade body UKHospitality warned that significant increases in employment costs and business rates, also effective today, are expected to lead to job losses and undermine business viability within the sector. The group estimated that approximately one in seven hospitality businesses could face closure due to these new financial burdens. UKHospitality specifically noted that the combined national minimum wage and national living wage increases, highlighted by the Prime Minister, represent an additional £1.4 billion annual cost for the hospitality industry. These various financial adjustments coincide with broader economic pressures and international concerns about energy supply.