Some of the biggest UK retailers will offer new deals to help families struggling with soaring prices over the summer holidays. Businesses agreed to slash some costs as part of the government’s Help for Households campaign.
It comes as the surging cost of living is pushing more and more families towards breaking point as rising food and fuel prices sent inflation to a new 40-year high. The deals include the extension of supermarket giant Asda’s scheme allowing children to buy a meal for £1, and the introduction of a “feed your family for a fiver” campaign by Sainsbury’s.
Amazon has a page linking to free music and TV, learning resources and value groceries, while children can get a free meal at Morrisons cafes. London theatres will let children see a West End show for free in August with a fee-paying adult, while telecoms firm Vodafone is promoting a mobile social tariff of £10 a month.
Boris Johnson said the campaign will help families across the country who are “feeling the pinch”. The Prime Minister said: “That’s why this government is providing an unprecedent £37 billion worth of support to help households through the storm.
“Both the public and private sector have a role to play here – and that’s why it’s great to see so many leading UK businesses are now coming forward to offer new deals and discounts that will provide much needed respite at the checkout. This won’t solve the issue overnight but it’s yet another weapon in our arsenal as we fight back against scourge of rising prices and inflation.”
People can find all the deals on the government’s new Help for Households website. The campaign will also provide fresh discounts during the back-to-school period, in autumn when energy bills are expected to surge to new record highs, and during the Christmas shopping season.
David Buttress, the government’s cost-of-living tsar and former Just Eat chief, agreed the deals with businesses. Mr Johnson and Mr Buttress are set to meet leaders of participating companies in Downing Street on Thursday (21 July) to discuss further cost-cutting initiatives.
Mr Buttress will praise the campaign’s “good start” while making clear that “we’ve got more to do and more deals to announce – not just over the summer holidays but when kids return to school and in the run up to Christmas when costs are typically higher”.
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