Keir Starmer gearing up for 'cruellest month in office', Tories warn (Image: Getty)
Households could be battered by over ￡1,000 in extra costs each year on average because of across-the-board bill rises, the Tories have warned. Average bills for some families across the country are set to rise by a whopping ￡1,191 a year, their analysis suggested.
Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride warned millions will be hit by “Labour's cruellest month in office” from Tuesday when several bills rocket. He said: “Tomorrow, hard-working families across the country will see their cost of living rise yet again — and it's all thanks to this Labour government's choices. A whole litany of household bills is set to soar, with some increases running into the hundreds of pounds. Whether it’s council tax, energy, water, broadband or car tax, almost every corner of family life is about to get more expensive.
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“New analysis by the Conservative Party shows the average household will be hit with over ￡1,000 in extra costs this year - a fresh blow to family finances already under pressure.
“Yes, these bill hikes may come into force on April Fools’ Day, but there’s nothing funny about what Labour is doing to the country.”
Energy bills are set to rise by an average of ￡111 a year, after three consecutive increases in the Energy Price Cap since Labour took office.
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Council tax will rise by an average of ￡109 per year as most in England are planning to raise council tax bills by 4.99% – the maximum amount permitted – with some including Birmingham, Bradford, Newham, Somerset, Trafford and Windsor & Maidenhead having been granted special permission to go even higher.
Water bills are set to go up by ￡123 per year on average while the standard rate for cars registered after April 2017 will rise by ￡5.
Broadband bills are to rise by ￡36 a year on average.
Phone bills will go up by ￡46 a year on average with the TV licence rising by ￡5 a year.
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Nursery fees are up by ￡756 a year on average because of the impact of Rachel Reeves’ jobs tax on providers.
Many of the bill hikes take effect from Tuesday in what has been dubbed “awful April”.
This is on top of hikes in stamp duty, minimum wage and national insurance increases.
Reform UK Deputy Leader Richard Tice said: “This April, the reality of a Labour government is going to hit British businesses and workers hard. This is not an April fool but an April nightmare.
“From national insurance rises to farmers being hammered to energy bills soaring, hard working Brits are being hit like never before this April.
“Rachel Reeves and Keir Starmer are failing Britain and it’s only going to get worse. Britain needs Reform.”
Tory MP Wendy Morton called the price hikes the result of a Chancellor “scrabbling around to fund Labour’s own political spending spree”.
She added: “Millions of hardworking households, pensioners, businesses, charities - the list seems endless - people who do the right thing, work hard, do the best for their families week in week out - are about to be clobbered with increased taxes across the board.
“Council Tax is just one example where households face eye watering increases- in Labour led Birmingham residents have faced a 17.5% increase over two years and currently don’t even get their bins emptied to the point that there are rats on the border of my constituency
that are the size of cats. This is the new generation of the squeaky blinders and it is the true face of the Labour Party in power.
“Labour is not the party for working people.”
These changes are coming into force ahead of local elections across the country on May 1.
It follows the Office for Budget Responsibility halving the UK growth forecast for 2025 from 2% to 1%
Tory MP Joe Robertson said: "The Labour Government already stalled the economy and their damaging tax hikes haven't even bitten yet.
“Awful April is going to be a time of hardship for many as the tax on jobs, small businesses, charities, farms and hospices hits all areas of the economy. It is hard working families that will bear the brunt.”
Households in the lowest 10% for income were already spending around two fifths (41%) of their earnings – after housing – on water, energy, broadband and car insurance bills, according to a study into social tariffs by the charity in partnership with the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), abrdn Financial Fairness Trust and Policy in Practice.
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This compared to 11% for those on middle incomes, with those in the top 10% for income spending just 5%.
The study found single-adult households, and particularly those with children, were more likely than other groups to be spending 20% or more of their post-housing income on these bills, leaving them more exposed to price shocks.
The IPPR said well-targeted social tariffs and bill support schemes across water, energy, broadband and car insurance markets could save households hundreds of pounds a year.
Citizens Advice chief executive Dame Clare Moriarty said: “After years of cost-of-living pressures, households across the country are about to feel the extra shock of rising essential bills. But for those on the lowest incomes, these unavoidable costs are already eating away at their finances, leaving their budgets stretched beyond breaking point.
“Social tariffs could be an effective safety net and put money back in people’s pockets, but the Government and providers must work together to make sure nobody struggling to make ends meet misses out.
“We want to see people eligible for bill support automatically enrolled to receive it. This change can’t come soon enough.”
Rachel Reeves promised that the average household would be “over ￡500 a year better off” under Labour – even after inflation.
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Ms Reeves told MPs in her spring statement that there are “no shortcuts to economic growth”.
She added: “It will take long-term decisions. It will take hard yards. It will take time for the reforms we are introducing to be felt in the everyday economy."
The Treasury has been contacted for comment.
By Mel Stride, Shadow Chancellor
Tomorrow, hard-working families across the country will see their cost of living rise yet again — and it's all thanks to this Labour government's choices.
A whole litany of household bills is set to soar, with some increases running into the hundreds of pounds. Whether it’s council tax, energy, water, broadband or car tax, almost every corner of family life is about to get more expensive.
New analysis by the Conservative Party shows the average household will be hit with over ￡1,000 in extra costs this year - a fresh blow to family finances already under pressure.
Yes, these bill hikes may come into force on April Fools’ Day, but there’s nothing funny about what Labour is doing to the country.
Time and time again, Labour’s promises have turned out to be hollow, cynical attempts to win votes. Keir Starmer vowed to freeze council tax. Instead, families across the country are facing eye-watering increases, and all for worse services.
Labour’s Jobs Tax comes in next week, meaning councils are having to raise rates just to pay the extra tax, not to fund better services. And in Labour-run Birmingham, councillors have awarded themselves bumper pay rises, funded by higher council tax, while rubbish piles up in the streets and basic services collapse.
Ed Miliband once promised his Net Zero by 2050 crusade would save families ￡300 on their energy bills. Instead, thanks to three consecutive price cap hikes, bills are now rising by an average of ￡111. Meanwhile, he's funnelling billions of taxpayers’ money into GB Energy while voting against safeguards that would keep its supply chains free from Chinese slave labour.
Broadband bills, water rates, insurance premiums, childcare fees - all rising. And the culprit is clear: Labour’s economic mismanagement. They’ve stoked inflation, pushed interest rates higher for longer, and heaped new costs on businesses - costs now being passed directly to consumers.
And it’s about to get worse. Later this week, some of Rachel Reeves’ punishing new tax rises come into force, tax rises designed not to help households, but to pay for Labour’s spending and borrowing spree. The Jobs Tax will mean businesses have to pass on some of the ￡25bn through raising their prices - as confirmed by the Bank of England and others.
The Conservative Party, under new leadership, will hold Labour to account. Across the country, our hard-working councillors are fighting to protect your money and deliver better services for less.
On May 1st, you can send Keir Starmer a clear message over this mess - over Labour's cruellest month in office. Vote Conservative for lower taxes and better services.