Minister accused of being out of touch over own-brand gaffe
A UK Government minister has been accused of being “woefully out of touch” for saying that people could buy own brand food to mitigate the cost of living crisis.
Prices of everyday items such as bread, milk and chicken have rocketed in recent months, along with energy bills.
Asked about how people were supposed to manage to feed their families with the rising prices of food, environment secretary George Eustice suggested they could buy “value” range goods instead of brand names.
Speaking on Sky News, Mr Eustice said: “Generally speaking, what people find is by going for some of the value brands rather than own-branded products – they can actually contain and manage their household budget.
“It will undoubtedly put a pressure on household budgets and, of course, it comes on top of those high gas prices as well.”
Labour’s shadow Treasury chief secretary, Pat Mcfadden, described the comments as “woefully out of touch from a Government with no solution to the costof-living crisis facing working people”
Liberal Democrat work and pensions spokesperson, Wendy Chamberlain, also criticised the comments, saying the Tories were “living in a parallel universe.” She added: “Families and pensioners who can’t afford their weekly shop need more help, not patronising advice from a clueless minister.”