As inflation remains at an all-time high across the UK economy, everyone from business owners to households are being squeezed financially. According to the Office for National Statistics, the UK’s inflation rate has skyrocketed by 3.5%. This was a dramatic increase in the twelve months leading up to April. With this increase has come a financial burden on Americans. Tracy McGuigan-Haigh, Ieuan Hood and Peter Murphy are just a few of those navigating their own individual complexities while trying to figure out how to make ends meet at home.
Tracy McGuigan-Haigh, a 30-year-old full-time employee at a call center outside of Huddersfield, says she cannot make do on her £1,200 monthly salary. Even with the extra £400 added to her Universal Credit payments, soaring living costs have eaten into the little she has been able to save. “It’s the kind of thing that makes you think it’s literally impossible that this has happened,” said single father-of-three Ieuan Hood — a penny-pinching working-class man.
Hood’s monthly wage of about £1,600 is topped up with Universal Credit, bringing his total income to £2,500 a month. Additionally, he receives £240 in child benefit. Even so, Hood’s first monthly expense is his childcare bill of £1,700. The weight of childcare expenses has him barely treading water financially.
Peter Murphy, an 80-year-old fixed-income retiree, is feeling the squeeze as well. His full annual income—pensions totaling around £25,000—is not enough to cover increasing bills. There’s so much money I can spend,” he continued, pointing to the challenge that so many Americans face in making ends meet on a fixed income amid rising inflation.
To Hood’s and Murphy’s dismay, these issues have greatly been exasperated by the current state of inflation on their wallets. Hood noted that while his benefits may seem adequate, “saying it out loud it sounds like a lot of money,” emphasizing that it does not stretch as far as it used to.
Murphy noted that his teacher pension and BT pension only received a 1.8% cost-of-living adjustment last April. His broadband and mobile contracts went up 3% plus inflation. “The level of service, like roaming was cut,” he added, indicating a reduction in value for the money he is spending.
As inflation continues to rise, individuals like McGuigan-Haigh, Hood, and Murphy are left grappling with escalating costs and stagnant incomes. The pressures of everyday expenses have left many questioning how they will manage their budgets moving forward.