The British government unveiled a multibillion-pound package Thursday to ease a severe cost-of-living squeeze, announcing the plan a day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed to “move on” from a months-long scandal over parties in government buildings during COVID-19 lockdowns.
Treasury chief Rishi Sunak said the government would introduce a temporary windfall tax on the profits of oil and gas firms. The tax is expected to raise around 5 billion pounds ($6.3 billion) over the next year and fund cash payments to help millions of people cope with sharply rising energy bills, Sunak said.