Politics

Tory suggests people buy supermarket value brands in car crash interview about cost of living crisis

Tory suggests people buy supermarket value brands in car crash interview about cost of living crisis
Minister advises struggling families to use ‘value brands’
Indy

A Tory minister put his foot in it when discussing the cost of living crisis today, suggesting people should just buy cheap brands instead.

Asked about what families could do to cut costs if they want to cook a Sunday roast, George Eustice told Sky News: “Generally what people find is going for some of the value brands, rather than own-branded products they can actually contain and manage their household budget.”

It comes as overall grocery price inflation hit 5.9 per cent this month in what is the fastest rise since December 2011, data from market researcher Kantar showed, due in part to the war in Ukraine.

It also comes as the latest Tory gaff on the issue after Johnson appeared to boast about introducing free bus passes in response to hearing about a woman who rides buses all day to stay warm without having to heat her home in an interview with Good Morning Britain. As well as being a bizarre response, it was also pretty misleading...

Commenting on that issue, Eustice added: “What would my advice be to Elsa (sic)? Well, my advice would be that, you know, not to stay on a bus all day to try and stay warm. My advice would be to seek some support from the local authority.”

Reacting to Eustice's comments, deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner said the Tories "haven't got a clue".

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Green party MP Caroline Lucas said it was a "staggering comment".

Here's how other people reacted:



Eustice won't live this one down easily...

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