We won’t solve the cost-of-living crisis if we can’t measure it

Inflation figures have long concealed people’s lived experience – but things could soon change, suggests Phil Thornton

The Bank of England’s chief economist has called for a more measured and ‘steady handed’ approach to raising UK interest rates amid uncertainty over energy prices and inflation (PA) (PA Wire)

A popular joke among statisticians has a person with her feet in an oven and her head in a freezer, saying: “On average, I feel fine.”

But there is little humour to be found in the UK consumer price inflation statistics. The headline official measure of annual inflation rose to a 30-year high of 5.4 per cent in December.

This is the rate targeted by the Bank of England’s monetary policy and explains why it is raising interest rates to prevent a runaway spike in price rises, which could in turn trigger calls for matching wage increase claims. But, of course, that figure is only an average and thus vulnerable to the weakness highlighted in the opening to this piece.