War in Ukraine will inflame the cost of living crisis and test voters’ endurance

Ministers are getting worried about the scale of hardship voters will be prepared to swallow, on top of what was already expected to be a tough year for household budgets, writes Andrew Woodcock

Officials at Kwasi Kwarteng’s business department are working on proposals to increase Rishi Sunak’s £200 energy loan (Getty)

This has been a week of stirring rhetoric in Westminster, much of it recalling Britain’s proud history of self-sacrifice and resilience in the Second World War.

Volodymyr Zelensky was universally applauded for invoking Churchill as he vowed to “fight in the forests, in the fields, on the shores, in the streets”. Kwasi Kwarteng appeared to be recalling the Blitz spirit as he said the UK public would be “willing to endure hardships” in solidarity with Ukraine.

But behind the scenes, ministers are getting worried about the scale of hardship voters will in fact be prepared to swallow, on top of what was already expected to be a tough year for household budgets.