Government ‘can do more’ to help with costs crisis
WELSH Secretary Robert Buckland has said he agrees with comments by financial journalist Martin Lewis that the UK Government needs to do more to help people with the cost-of-living crisis.
Last week, Mr Lewis said: “The winter coming is going to be bleak. I believe, unless action is taken, we are facing a potential national financial cataclysm.
“As individuals, you need to be aware of that so you can take, if possible (and to be honest, it’s not always possible), preventative action yourself.
“Yet more so, the Conservative Party leadership candidates, one of whom will soon become our Prime Minister, need to know how stark things will be on the day they take office. So far, the debate seems to have mostly ignored the fact we are sitting on a financial time bomb that’s due to explode in September.
And those candidates, in truth, are the only ones with a chance of defusing that catastrophe.”
Asked about the comments, which you can see in full here Sir Robert Buckland told BBC Radio Wales’ Sunday Supplement programme: “We are absolutely in a position to to take further action”. “I think Martin makes a very powerful point, I can assure him that the government isn’t sort of resting on its laurels. We know we’ve already taken big measures to help with regard to energy bills and money is coming through to people now. “Clearly, every week that goes by the government is in a position where reviewing and looking at the changes to the energy cap changes to inflation, all those cost-of-living issues that are affecting people, and therefore, you’re putting itself in a position where it will be able to take action, either under budget or before then in order to deal with any immediate spikes or crises or challenges that people are going to face.
“We are absolutely in a position to to take further action and to add to the £37bn package that we’ve already announced to help with energy costs. So we’re, I’m certainly carry on my work through the summer and I know Cabinet colleagues are as well and that very much includes addressing the cost of living and making sure that people aren’t left in a position where they have to make the sort of choices that none of us should be making in the winter.”
He was also asked about the Conservative leadership election and whether, ahead of ballots being sent to party members today, it was a done deal for Liz Truss.
“I’ve been a member of the Conservative Party for many years and I talk to members and was talking to the local members only yesterday and I think that anybody who can project this race with that degree of certainty, doesn’t know the membership of the party.
“Members have been faced with a sudden leadership election. As you know, there were a number of other candidates, many of whom was supported by members. They’ve now been given a choice of two. Many members are getting to grips with that and thinking about it carefully now for the first time, and therefore, I genuinely think there are