New analysis released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) into the impact of the rising cost of living has revealed that in March almost a quarter (23%) of people found it difficult or very difficult to pay household bills - an increase of 17 per cent since November 2021.
Worryingly, nine out of 10 (87%) people reported an increase in the cost of living in March, up from 62 per cent in November last year. Seventeen per cent of people also reported borrowing more money or using more credit than they did a year ago.
Most common reasons behind the cost of living increase were food shopping (88%), gas and electricity bills (83%) and fuel (77%).
