NICOLA Sturgeon has told Boris Johnson to stop talking and deliver meaningful action to tackle the cost of living crisis.
The Prime Minister has come under fire after the Queen’s Speech made no mention of fresh anti-poverty measures, despite millions of people across the UK struggling to pay for basic necessitates.
Following the announcement on Tuesday, Johnson suggested he and Sunak would announce more financial support “in the days to come”. But the Treasury quickly shot down this suggestion, while No 10 conceded more support should not be expected in the “next few days”.
Michael Gove has since claimed the Tory leader’s comments were “overinflated” as he ruled out an emergency budget.
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The First Minister called for a pandemic-style response from the UK Government to tackle the poverty crisis.
She told Bauer media: “It’s not enough for the Prime Minister to say that the Queen’s Speech is all about helping people with the cost of living when there was nothing in the Queen’s Speech that actually delivered that in practice. We need to see action.”
“The steps that have been taken so far are not enough. They are way short of what is needed.
“People are struggling right now to feed their children, to heat their homes and we know it’s going to get worse as we go through the summer, into the autumn and winter so there is an urgency here.”
“Stop letting us hear the words about it and let us see the action”@nicolasturgeon has issued a direct message to the Prime Minister and Chancellor on the cost of living crisis
— Alan Smith (@Political_AlanS) May 11, 2022
The First Minister says there was nothing in the Queen’s Speech to help people with rising bills pic.twitter.com/o1SR8YEaa1
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The SNP leader urged Johnson to cut VAT on energy bills and provide more direct support to "low-income, fuel-poor" households.
She also called for No 10 to follow the Scottish Government's lead and increase social security benefits to 6%.
She continued: “We’re seeing other governments across Europe take much more action and of course at the start of the pandemic we saw a scale of response that was necessary to help people at that point and that’s the kind of scale of response that we need to see from Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak now.
“Stop talking about it … and let us see the action.”
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Johnson chaired a meeting of the domestic and economic strategy committee with senior ministers on Tuesday, and held a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
No 10 has in the past suggested they have been told to come up with ideas to ease the pain that do not require new money.
Households are facing soaring energy bills, inflation is forecast to hit 10% and welfare payments and wages are falling far behind the increase in prices.
How is the cost of living crisis affecting you?
From soaring energy bills to rising food prices and stagnating wages, it's getting harder and harder for many Scots to make ends meet. We want to tell the stories of how the cost of living crisis is impacting people in Scotland. Are you struggling to choose between heating and eating? Are you finding it increasingly difficult to afford your weekly shop? If so, we want to go beyond the statistics and tell your story.
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