Unveiling the Impact of the Cost of Living Crisis: Deepening Poverty and Policy Solutions

In 2022, inflation rates reached historically high levels, causing the price of essentials, particularly food and energy, to soar resulting in a severe cost of living crisis. The cost of living crisis has created significant challenges for many households. However, it has disproportionately impacted the everyday lives of individuals from low-income households, pushing them further into poverty. According to JRF's report published in January 2023, over 7 million households were unable to afford essentials such as food, clothing, and shelter in the winter of 2022/2023. Although the inflation rate is now on a declining trend, it does not reverse the lasting effects of the cost of living crisis for people in low-income households who are at the intersections of multiple inequalities of class, income, gender, ‘race’/ethnicity, age, disability, etc.