3 days ago
Labour Fails to Boost UK Living Standards After One Year on Job
UK living standards are no higher than when Labour swept to power a year ago, highlighting the problems piling up for Prime Minister Keir Starmer as he struggles to contain the rise of Nigel Farage's populist Reform UK party.
Discretionary incomes tumbled 4.2% in April after a wave of bill increases and tax hikes, and failed to improve in May — the worst two months for households since the spring of 2022 when Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent energy prices rocketing, according to Retail Economics. In total, they have fallen 7.5% this year to levels seen just after Labour won a landslide victory in July last year, with the least well off hit hardest.
