David Lammy: Scrap VAT on energy to fight cost of living crisis
29 December 2021, 16:50 | Updated: 3 January 2022, 08:20
David Lammy criticises management of cost of living crisis
Boris Johnson must act urgently to address the UK's cost of living crisis, according to David Lammy.
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As 2022 is tipped to be "the year of the squeeze" David Lammy addressed the perfect storm set to impact Brits early next year.
Read more: 'Cost of living catastrophe': Families face £1,200 hit as energy bills soar and taxes rise
He cited a phone-in from earlier in the week where listeners told him that the cost of gas and electricity for some consumers were being put up "400 percent.
"We've got pensioners freezing in their homes. We've got people living in flats, one bedroom flats and you can't afford to pay the bill."
David offered his solution to the impending crisis: "The first thing the government have got to do is get rid of the VAT on energy. This isn't a luxury, this is a necessity."
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He added that "the system's so complicated" that he himself struggled to work out his own household energy consumption.
Citing another factor contributing to the perfect storm coming around the corner, David noted that "wages aren't going up" whilst prices are.
He acknowledged that some industries such as fruit picking have seen drastic wage hikes recently but "the vast majority of people aren't seeing wage increases".
"I've been in shopping over Christmas prices are going up, they're not going down."
To add fuel to an already raging fire, "this year you're going to get clobbered with more taxes" David reminded listeners, noting that national insurance and other taxes will be hiked early in 2022.
"Boris Johnson is our Prime Minister and he's going to have to do something about it."
