Staggering new figures have revealed just how much the cost of everyday essentials has soared over 12 months - with the price of milk jumping by 26 per cent. Britain's rate of inflation has surged to a fresh 40-year high as rocketing fuel and food prices drove it closer towards double figures, it was announced today.
And the statistics, based on the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) measure of inflation and published by the Office for National Statistics, reveal the true cost of that rise to all our pockets.
In each case quoted, the figure is the percentage change in the average price over the 12 months to June this year. Low fat milk has gone up by 26.3 per cent, butter by 21.5 per cent, olive oil by 18.2 per cent and pasta and couscous by 15.9 per cent.
