UK Households Paid £13,961 Extra on Bills Since 2021, TUC Says

British households have paid an additional £13,961 on average on bills since 2021, according to analysis of official figures by the Trades Union Congress (TUC). The Guardian

The figure covers mortgages, loans, energy and water bills over the past five years. The TUC said it equates to an extra £2,792 a year on average for British households.

The TUC urged Chancellor John Healey to tackle soaring living costs and support households with measures in the budget. Paul Nowak is the general secretary of the TUC. The union body also said the UK recorded the weakest growth in consumer spending in the G7, a group of seven large economies, since before the pandemic.

Healey's first budget as chancellor is scheduled for 28 October. He has pledged to use it to give households "breathing space".

Typical household energy bills were predicted to reach £2,000 a year from January. That forecast adds pressure on living costs ahead of the budget statement.

The Confederation of British Industry, which speaks for employers, called for cuts to business electricity costs, changes to business rates and measures to support private investment. It also said Healey should listen to calls for a cut in employer national insurance contributions to encourage firms to take on younger workers.

The IPPR thinktank said headroom against the chancellor's fiscal rule was likely to have shrunk by between £7bn and £15bn since the spring. It urged Healey to raise £16bn, mostly through a rise in capital gains tax softened by a new entrepreneur "super exemption".

The International Monetary Fund, which advises governments on economic policy, urged Healey to "stay the course" to cut the budget deficit amid rising borrowing costs. The deficit is the gap between what the government spends and what it brings in.