There is no “golden bullet” for resolving the cost of living crisis, the minister warned as Boris Johnson prepares to ask his cabinet ministers to help him find solutions to ease pressure on household finances.
Armed Forces Secretary James Happy told Sky News that “there is no doubt” that any government intervention would be “expensive”, but added that a “cumulative” set of measures could “start to make a difference”.
This comes as the prime minister prepares to meet with his top counterparts to discuss “innovative” ways to tackle the cost of living crisis, which does not rely solely on increased government spending.
Political Center: PM urges new ideas to alleviate cost of living crisis
Many people in the UK are facing increases in energy bills, municipal taxes and the effects of tax increases on national security – as well as inflation, which reached a 30-year high of 7% earlier this month.
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2:40 How has inflation affected everyday goods?
Take the cost of living crisis ‘seriously’
“There is no doubt that these interventions are expensive – £ 22 billion in government intervention to help families with the cost of living is already huge,” he said.
“There will be other levers that the government can pull and, you know, none of them will be a golden bullet.
“But cumulatively, if you can provide people with very little savings in their cost of living, then cumulatively it starts to make a difference.
“So I would not smell the abolition of the tariff for a particular type of food, because if this goes hand in hand with the reduction of the duty on fuel for pumps, which has happened, this is accompanied by an increase in personal allowance, increase in national support, you can start seeing and helping people with their energy bills.
“You can start to see how this is starting to ease the pressure on the families who are struggling the most.”
Labor: An urgent budget is needed
Labor has reiterated its call for an “emergency budget” to deal with the rising costs facing households, warning that “rising” prices are putting pressure on working families.
It says that this emergency budget must include a contingency tax for oil and gas companies to allow energy bills to be reduced.
Number 10 said the government was renewing its efforts to raise awareness of the “strong package” of financial aid already on offer, and warned that “private companies must play their part” in helping cut costs.
Read more: Four simple changes you can make to save £ 400 from your energy bills
Before the cabinet, Mr Johnson said: “With rising household bills and living costs facing global challenges, easing the burden on the British and expanding our economy must be a team effort across the cabinet.
“We have a strong package of financial support on offer, worth £ 22 billion, and it is up to all of us to make sure that the aid reaches the most severely affected and hard-working families across the country.
“We will continue to do everything we can to support people without allowing government spending and debt to stop, while continuing to help Britons find good jobs and earn more, no matter where they live.
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17:33 Questions and answers about the cost of living
PM calls for creative ideas
But the Liberal Democrats accused the government of being “completely without ideas”.
“What the British need now is the right leadership – that means an urgent budget, a reduction in VAT and an unforeseen tax on the excess profits of oil and gas companies,” said party leader Sir Ed Davy.
Mr Johnson is said to have asked his cabinet to attend the meeting on Tuesday morning with their proposals to ease the pressure on households.
Read more: Five million households are now under “fuel stress” as energy price cap rises to almost £ 2k
Mr Happy told Sky News he could not say whether an action plan to reduce the cost of living had been agreed, but stressed that the government was taking the issue “seriously”.
“The cost of living is already reaching such a point that even well-paid people are struggling to make ends meet and asking the government to help them with solutions,” he told Sky News.
“Now what they will decide in the cabinet this morning is for them and it is certainly not for me to try to follow up, but already this year the government has invested £ 22 billion in targeted funding to support those who they struggle the most with the cost of living.
“And the fact that the cabinet is meeting today to discuss more shows you how seriously this is taken by the prime minister, the chancellor and others, their colleagues in the cabinet.”
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Supermarkets reduce prices
According to new data released by the National Statistics Office this week, nearly nine out of 10 adults say they have seen an increase in their cost of living – up from 62% in November last year.
Yesterday, the Asda and Morrisons supermarket groups announced efforts to help troubled shoppers during the cost-of-life crisis.
Asda, Britain’s third-largest supermarket after Tesco and Sainsbury’s, said it would invest more than £ 73 million to keep more than 100 basic items low by the end of the year.
Items include fresh fruits, vegetables, fresh meat and frozen foods.
Morrisons, the country’s fourth-largest supermarket, said it had cut prices on more than 500 products, including cereals, cooking sauces, chicken and sausages, as well as flour, bread and ham.
Asda said the prices of the affected items will fall by an average of 12%, while Morrisons said its reductions will be an average of 13%.
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