Benjamin Wilce

@Streettough Costa has always been overpriced. The family should know that

I swear this lunch would have cost half of that 10 years ago and I strongly doubt that their joint income hasn’t doubled in that time? Certainly not through costs of living payrises

A family lunch in Costa for £52 is bad though isn’t it? People really should be able to eat out and enjoy some luxuries. Many boomers seemingly want everything to be a grim, miserable slog for most, whilst they constantly swan off on their cruises

@Mike_Nis @SkyNews @RachelReevesMP We don't have a enough nuclear or renewables to do that

@SkyNews @RachelReevesMP Why doesn’t the UK look to switch off / limit their use of Gas Power Stations and rely on the Nuclear and vast amounts of Renewable sources they have heavily invested in? This would reduce the Elec price as it wouldn’t be driven by the wholesale gas cost?

'No one would pay a penny more for their gas and electricity this autumn and winter' under Labour's plans to tackle the increase in the energy price cap, says Shadow Chancellor @RachelReevesMP. trib.al/iloRtPt 📺 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube

@choppedchilli @crescentmoontea Wouldn't that just put millions of people and children into real poverty. Many will get more from the state pension than they pay in. You need around 300k pension pot to replace the state pension.

@BenjaminWilce @crescentmoontea State pension is paid for over a lifetime. Scrap in work benefits - in suppresses ambition.

I get £600/month and that's both the base Universal Credit pay AND the too sick to work benefit. that's £7,200/year. some of you just love making up issues to be mad about.

@choppedchilli @crescentmoontea State pension is about half of that and 2/3 of other benefits are people in work.

@crescentmoontea Do that maths - £407bn welfare bill by 2030. Completely unsustainable.

@Evanalex07 @IainWATP @MartinSLewis Only green party are saying they not paying enough tax. Tory's and reform are saying the minimum wage and cooperation tax is to high

@BenjaminWilce @IainWATP @MartinSLewis Mate come on, look at the profits these massive companies are making year on year

Today's Poll: Are you an employee, if so is your pay due to rise next month, April? Which of these is CLOSEST to your situation PS If you get a rise at other times in the year then the answer is no. This is about how many people see an April increase.

@Evanalex07 @IainWATP @MartinSLewis It's ok saying that but how do the government pay for it. If business have increased wages they fund it by putting up they prices.

@BenjaminWilce @IainWATP @MartinSLewis Or how about they stop putting everything else up and actually increase the tax free allowance and let the economy have a chance

@SamMearns @PolitlcsUK Some costs could come down like bills but most costs will go up long term.

@BenjaminWilce @PolitlcsUK So prices need to be permanently high?

🚨 NEW: Inflation remained unchanged in February at 3%

@Youthcryptohope @MartinSLewis If your on minimum wage it's 4.1% so above inflation

@MartinSLewis No idea, part time but each year is a surprise despite ask8ngbduringbthevrun up to April…good eh!

@IainWATP @MartinSLewis If you didn't get a pay rise you would be even worse off.

@MartinSLewis 3.5% pay rise. Rent up 5.6% and council tax up 5.9% so doesn’t feel like an actual pay rise 😖

@ash_mccutcheon @MartinSLewis It's still a pay rise but level with inflation

@MartinSLewis 2% pay rise extra £20 a month that will go on the rise of council tax. So in reality no pay rise

@SamMearns @PolitlcsUK Prices still go up when inflation goes down. It would have to be negative inflation for prices to drop

@PolitlcsUK Go to the shops. Inflation ain’t at 3% everything is still going up and has been for years. Even when inflation was coming down supermarkets keep putting the prices up.

@HeathFlowen @robprogressive 60-70% of council tax goes on them things

@BenjaminWilce @robprogressive Not even close.

Why do I have to pay over £5,000 to have my bins emptied Just because my house is bigger? Or in a different area? It’s the same ‘service’ whether your house is worth £200K or £2 million Up to £5,835 a year to get your bins emptied Oh, and if I ALREADY pay a national tax, why am I paying a local tax on top? Council tax is actually a wealth tax

@Dilemmatime @MartinSLewis I would agree but pensioners and people with electricity wheelchairs would pay more. That's reason charity's give for not scrapping them

@BenjaminWilce @MartinSLewis Would make it more transparent then who was excessively profiteering, comparing just one price would simplify things and those whom used more paid more

How would the govt intervene to cut energy bills if needed? Its worth looking at the two previous domestic energy models we saw in recent years. 1. Liz Truss (as PM) reduce energy costs for all. The Energy Price Guarantee reduced bills by limiting the unit rates charged for gas and electricity, with the government saying this would keep (the then definition of a) typical household bill to about £2,500/yr. This was a very expensive route for the state, as it meant all bills were reduced, and by definition the biggest users got the biggest subsidies. Though it did mean everyone got helped. 2. Rishi Sunak (as Chancellor) flat help for all and targeted support. Before that happened there had already been support in place. It comprised a menu of help for different people across slightly different times. Roughly... - £400 grant for domestic electricity users paid over 6mths - £150 council tax rebate for those on Council Tax Band A to D (seen as a proxy for lower incomes) - £650 for those on certain means-tested benefits - £300 top-up for state pensioners - £150 payment for those on certain non-means-tested disability benefits. This was still costly, but not as much, as it was targeted, and the amounts were flat so lower users got the same help as higher. ---------- My suspicion is the current govt is more likely to look at the second version as a model for what it does (though it doesn't look like the payments spread would be as wide or as big)

@HeathFlowen @robprogressive Social care for old people in homes and children in care homes

@robprogressive It doesn't even pay for bins. As usual, it's all welfare and red tape.

@JohnAnders46152 @MartinSLewis That is only 5%. If bills double that won't make a big difference

@MartinSLewis Remove the VAT it's a necessity

@Dilemmatime @MartinSLewis That would have go on the unit rate

@MartinSLewis Outlaw standing charges, it’s as simple as that!

@Shaun09902039 @MartinSLewis Because Household energy companies don't make billions of profits. Shell may make billions around the world but it's not UK profits

@MartinSLewis Why do we need to use tax payers money to cut bills each time? Why not hit the energy companies and their 100’s millions of pounds of profit? We can also start drilling more in the North Sea which will bring the price down.

@howster34 @MartinSLewis It wouldn't lower bills by much if by any maybe abit more tax revenue

@MartinSLewis Start digging the North Sea for oil, seems a simple solution we need stop replying on foreign countries when we have a massive ocean with the stuff just sitting there

@BarryCinders @DHKITCH @TiceRichard @reformparty_uk Reform are saying it will lower the cost of fuel. It won't

@BenjaminWilce @DHKITCH @TiceRichard @reformparty_uk No, but we would get huge income from taxing the profits. Those taxes could be used to invest in infrastructure.

Another UK energy expert says: Drill Baby Drill British Gas boss: Drill North Sea to bring down energy prices Only ⁦@reformparty_uk⁩ can be trusted to bring down cost of living Been saying this for yrs Tories started this Net Zero madness telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/…

@TiceRichard @reformparty_uk gbnews.com/money/north-se…