Cost of living crisis: Boris Johnson offers support to families but rules out windfall tax

Boris Johnson admitted yesterday that Britain is in a ‘tough patch’ but said we are in a ‘much better position’ to cope with rising inflation than we were in the 1980s or 1990s.

On the final day of campaigning ahead of today’s local elections, the Prime Minister vowed to ‘support people in any way that we can’ in the face of the cost of living crisis.

The comments came as the Bank of England looked set to raise interest rates to a 13-year high of one per cent today as it tries to curb inflation.

The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates today to 1 per cent 

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, pictured, yesterday in Southampton dismissed calls for the imposition of a windfall tax on big energy companies to help solve the UK’s cost of living crisis

During a visit to Southampton, Mr Johnson said: ‘The best future for the country is to get through the tough patch we have now, support people in any way that we can, but remember we are now seeing a lot of employment and people in high-wage, high-skilled jobs.’

The PM also warned against imposing a windfall tax on big energy companies.

He said a tax would ‘stop investment’ in urgently needed new solutions and green energy for the country to build up its own energy supplies.

‘The problem we have is that… this is an incredible country, incredible economy, fifth biggest in the world, but we’re mainlining energy from France,’ he said.

‘It’s insane. We haven’t invested enough in our own domestic energy and we need these big energy companies to step up to the plate and put their money into sustainable solutions. That is a much better solution than clobbering them and stopping them from making that investment.’

The Government has been criticised for failing to do more to help ease the cost of living crisis – and pressing ahead with deeply unpopular tax rises including the hike in national insurance.

But while inflation is at a 30-year high of seven per cent and could even hit 10 per cent later this year, unemployment is just 3.8 per cent. It has not been lower since 1974, and was above 10 per cent for much of the 1980s and early 1990s.