Rishi Sunak’s hopes of keeping his five promises to voters have been dealt yet another blow after new figures showed inflation is not coming down.
The prime minister vowed in January that the government would halve the rate at which prices are rising by the end of the year.
At the time, the inflation rate was around 10%.
But data released this morning by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that the rate in the year to May was 8.7% – the same as the month before and higher than expected.
Even more worryingly for the PM, so-called “core” inflation, which strips out volatile prices like oil and food, has gone up to 7.1% – the highest figure since March 1992.
The figures mean it is all-but certain that the Bank of England will hike interest rates yet again tomorrow, inflicting more pain on mortgage holders.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: “We know how much high inflation hurts families and businesses across the country, and our plan to halve the rate this year is the best way we can keep costs and interest rates down.
“We will not hesitate in our resolve to support the Bank of England as it seeks to squeeze inflation out of our economy, while also providing targeted support with the cost of living.”
Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Sarah Olney said: “These worse than expected figures show the government is failing miserably to bring inflation down and provide relief for struggling families facing soaring bills.”
Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said: “This Tory government can’t get a grip of this problem because they are the problem.
“13 years of the Tories and their disastrous mini-Budget are damaging our economic security and leaving families worse off.
