With the Bank of England having just announced a fifth consecutive interest rate hike, I have a comment below from my client, the co-founder of ZIPZERO, about the need for businesses to react. Namely, he is calling on David Buttress, the Government’s new ‘cost-of-living tsar’, to work with energy providers and retailers to double down on the support provided to customers right now, rather than leaving it up consumers to manage the challenging economic climate alone:
Mohsin Rashid, co-founder of ZIPZERO, said: “That's now five interest rates hikes since December. While designed to curb spiralling inflation, in reality this will only place a greater strain on many households' finances in the months to come. Anyone with debts, most notably mortgages, could now see their repayments increase, eating further into their budgets for the everyday essentials.
“Action is needed, and fast. But leaving it up to Britons to 'take control of their finances' is too lazy. Rather, public and private sector collaboration is needed – the Government, energy providers and retailers must respond quickly, doubling down on their commitments to help people through this challenging economic climate.
“It’s telling that, according to ZIPZERO's poll of 2,000 UK adults just this week, 84% think energy providers should be doing a bit (25%) or a lot (59%) more to help people through the cost-of-living crisis, with 81% saying the same of the Government and 70% wanting retailers to offer more support. So, we're calling on David Buttress, the Government’s new ‘cost-of-living tsar’, to work with energy firms and retailers to band together and deliver workable solutions to help customers carve out a more financially secure future.”
