"Cost of living crisis" over?

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BBC News - ONS: After six years, wages finally overtake inflation

After nearly six years of falling real wages, weekly earnings have finally edged above inflation.

Weekly wages, including bonuses, rose by 1.7% in the year to February, up from 1.4% in January, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Earlier this week, inflation, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI), fell to 1.6%


We also have unemployment down below 7% and employment at a new record high.

BBC News - UK unemployment falls to five-year low of 2.2m

Be interesting to see how Labour deal with this. Their last line of attack on the economy seems to have just been taken away.
 
seems as though we have two worlds here , one called real where an increasing number of the population are facing real hardships, no wage increases, ever rising cost of living and now we learn that at least 4.7 million are living in food poverty -http://The food poverty scandal that shames Britain: Nearly 1m people rely on handouts to eat – and benefit reforms may be to blame - UK Politics - UK - The Independent
Then we have the ONS publishing figures the Governments wants it do to in the hope that if they do it often enough people will vote for them again
I know what i prefer to believe .Thats not to say Labour has all the answers of course but a little honesty would go a long way
 
And will this take into account rising house prices, increased mortgage rates for the poorest, and spiralling rental costs .?
 
seems as though we have two worlds here , one called real where an increasing number of the population are facing real hardships, no wage increases, ever rising cost of living and now we learn that at least 4.7 million are living in food poverty -http://The food poverty scandal that shames Britain: Nearly 1m people rely on handouts to eat – and benefit reforms may be to blame - UK Politics - UK - The Independent
Then we have the ONS publishing figures the Governments wants it do to in the hope that if they do it often enough people will vote for them again
I know what i prefer to believe .Thats not to say Labour has all the answers of course but a little honesty would go a long way

The ONS figures are the best we have.

How much extra tax are you prepared to pay to help resolve this situation?

Public spending has increased but the trouble is that immigration means that budget is being spread over a greater number of people, yet you are the one saying that 'immigration doesn't matter as it 'all evens out'.....

At least try and be consistent!
 
Ah, massaged statistics again.?
Take away the 'bonuses' and we are below inflation . Pointless figures in that case as the average is being dragged up by the ludicrous increase in wages at the top. This means nothing to the people in the middle and the poor. Fail.!
 
And will this take into account rising house prices, increased mortgage rates for the poorest, and spiralling rental costs .?

Increased mortgages for the poorest? Interest rates are at an all time low and will remain at low levels by historic standards even if they rise 2-3% from here.

People who took out (variable rates) mortgages but couldn't afford for rates to increase clearlycould not afford that mortgage in the first place.
 
No, people with high levels of equity get much more beneficial rates - those with little or none ( first time buyers/ the poor ) get much more unfavourable rates. My sister in law pays double the percentage I do, she has just attempted to move providers and there is little difference due to her circumstances.
And you are not taking into account the new housing bubble.!
 
While I'm unconvinced that the tide has in fact turned, I do take some small comfort in the fact that I might be drowning more slowly.
 
Just heard some stats on the radio -
Over the last 6 years prices up by 17% and wages up by 8% ( a lot of that being dragged up by wage increases for the already wealthy).
So effectively this latest press release is pointless and a desperate attempt by the government to gain credibility. This will mean nothing for the majority of the electorate.
 
Just heard some stats on the radio -
Over the last 6 years prices up by 17% and wages up by 8% ( a lot of that being dragged up by wage increases for the already wealthy).
So effectively this latest press release is pointless and a desperate attempt by the government to gain credibility. This will mean nothing for the majority of the electorate.

Prices were going up by more than 17% per year during the 1970s..
 
Point is, the cost of living crisis clearly is not over and this thread is an exercise in futility.!
 
Point is, the cost of living crisis clearly is not over and this thread is an exercise in futility.!
There has to be a point where the tide turns, it is not as if fingers can be clicked and magically we're back in the good times.

No need for jubilation, but if the rate of change continues then it is good news, just not crystalised yet.
 
Point is, the cost of living crisis clearly is not over and this thread is an exercise in futility.!

The average wage increase is now ahead of average price rises, per the official figures.

Nobody has claimed that all groups in society now have wage rises ahead of price rises.
 
And as I have pointed out these figures are heavily skewed by bonuses - this is nothing more than spin and I am surprised you fell for it.!
 
Haven't bonuses fallen dramatically since the EU capped them?

edit: apparently not :)

Bankers bonuses went up by 29% this year.
 
If my back of an envelope calculation is in the right ball park a 30% increase in bankers bonuses would skew the total National Wage Income by about 0.3%
 
Inflation is down at 1.6% now. I see this in my day to day living. We all do. Like it or not, inflation is pretty low. The Labour party keep on talking about cost of living.... Well, it's actually pretty stable. Has been for some time. Talking about bankers bonuses is irrelevant except for those who are envious of the money they make. It has no effect on the real economy.

I have always been a Labour voter by the way. But as much as I don't like to admit it, Osbourne's last budget was wonderful. The pension and ISA reforms have made saving something that everyone can do and benefit from. I would so much have loved Labour to have stood up and applauded. But no, they keep banging on about bankers. It's starting to look embarrassing.

Phil
 
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Inflation is down at 1.6% now. I see this in my day to day living. We all do. Like it or not, inflation is pretty low. The Labour party keep on talking about cost of living.... Well, it's actually pretty stable. Has been for some time. Talking about bankers bonuses is irrelevant except for those who are envious of the money they make. It has no effect on the real economy.

I have always been a Labour voter by the way. But as much as I don't like to admit it, Osbourne's last budget was wonderful. The pension and ISA reforms have made saving something that everyone can do and benefit from. I would so much have loved Labour to have stood up and applauded. But no, they keep banging on about bankers. It's starting to look embarrassing.

Phil

Apart from increasing tax income to help reduce the deficit?!
 
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Aboard from increasing tax income to help reduce the deficit?!

Well, I have no issues with that, as I don't know enough about it to be honest. But as a nation we don't save enough. We all know this. Osbourne has done more to encourage saving than any Chancellor I can remember. Sure, there are good reasons to do this - we face millions of older people in poverty otherwise. But he grasped the nettle, and did it. It was the right thing to do. Labour are really on the back foot now, and whinging and moaning about bankers will only cement their support in their homelands. I look for more from a party aspiring to lead our country.

Phil
 
Saving has only recently become an option as inflation has approached interest rates.
Bonuses do matter if you read the original article, as if you exclude them from income rises then wage rises remain below inflation.
 
Saving has only recently become an option as inflation has approached interest rates.
Bonuses do matter if you read the original article, as if you exclude them from income rises then wage rises remain below inflation.


I disagree. We have never saved enough. I know too many people who have refused to save into a pension because 'it was a waste of money'. Osbourne has tried to address that, and I can't see any comments here or on any other threads suggesting he was wrong. If people now don't save in a pension, then they will have to deal with the consequences. There are no excuses any more. By the way, I look at savings and pensions in the same light. Osbourne has just made pensions so much simpler and more accessible.
Bonus's in the private sector are irrelevant. Yes, they might be a problem in the publicly owned businesses. But in the overall economy; they are a diversion that we all like to moan about, but really aren't a big issue, other than to get people all hot under the collar. Sit back and look at it... It's really not a huge problem. It might need to be addressed, yes. But it's a diversion from the real issues.

Phil
 
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It wasn't me who included bonuses, it was part of the article. I am happy to ignore bonus payments as that then shows inflation is still higher than wages.!
 
Well, I have no issues with that, as I don't know enough about it to be honest. But as a nation we don't save enough. We all know this. Osbourne has done more to encourage saving than any Chancellor I can remember. Sure, there are good reasons to do this - we face millions of older people in poverty otherwise. But he grasped the nettle, and did it. It was the right thing to do. Labour are really on the back foot now, and whinging and moaning about bankers will only cement their support in their homelands. I look for more from a party aspiring to lead our country.

Phil

I agree with what you are saying. The point, often lost, is that these bonuses are taxed at 45% so have a beneficial impact on the economy!
 
It wasn't me who included bonuses, it was part of the article. I am happy to ignore bonus payments as that then shows inflation is still higher than wages.!

Ignore them when it suits you, include them when it doesn't...
 

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