A disabled mum who has lost four stone as she struggles to feed her family amid the cost of living crisis says that soaring bills in April could break her.
Tracy Davies, 60, suffers from fibromyalgia and lives with her husband and full-time carer Paul, 56, and her two adult children - Hanna, 33, and Adam who are both autistic.
The family from Cheshire were already struggling to pay the bills and Tracy has cut everything that was not essential from their shop, but it's still not enough.
She said that if bills go up any more it will be like "tightening a belt that is already too small for us" - and added that she's already lost four stone in weight as she can't afford to eat.
Tracy said: "We're only just coping now. Some of my shopping has gone up more than 30 per cent. I'm having to eat so much less now that I lost four stone in the last two years.
"There's nothing else I can cut, and with adult disabled children I can't cancel things like broadband and TV. So what will be will be. I'm not in arrears with anyone at the moment but if it happens it won't be my fault, there's nothing I can do about it.
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"It really feels like you're being screwed into the ground by someone's foot and they can't step any harder, they really can't.
"People are going to die from not eating and not looking after themselves and being worried about not paying their gas and electric bills. It's not fair at all."
Taking aim at Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt's impending budget, she added: "Sunak is that rich he doesn't understand. Someone who pays half a million in tax hasn't got a clue, what people are losing is small potatoes for him."
April 1 will be no laughing matter as households face bill hikes from Saturday that will leave them £700 a year worse off.
Dubbed April Cruel Day, we will pay more for council tax, water, car tax, phones, prescriptions and stamps – with some rises hitting 17 per cent.
Greg Marsh, chief executive of free bills management site Nous, said: "Our analysis shows the average family will be £682.70 a year worse off.
"This is going to be an awful April for households. It's been a difficult winter but sadly there is a lot more pain and suffering to come.
"Nous has been calling for regulators to take a much more robust position. We think they and the Government should stamp out the practice of companies being able to do these annual increases."
The Consumer Prices Index rose from 10.1 per cent in January to 10.4 per cent in February, partly driven by an 18.2 per cent hike in the average price of food and soft drinks.
The Office for National Statistics said this was the largest rise since August 1977.
While the Chancellor confirmed the Energy Price Guarantee will stay at £2,500 a year for the typical household from April to July, energy bills will still rise as the £400 discount ends on April 1.
And last week, the Bank of England piled on mortgage misery when interest rates were raised another 0.25 per cent to 4.25 per cent.
Consumer expert Dr Roger Gewolb said while it could be going too far for companies to be told what they can charge, at some point the Government will have to "step in".
He said: "When prices go this far, someone has to do something. The impact on households will be huge. The Government have no idea what it's like for people to try and live at the moment."
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